By Humberto Viera
07 Oct 2024, 2:24 PM EDT
Players from Club Deportivo Palestino, which plays in Chile’s first division of soccer, displayed a banner denouncing the “genocide in Palestine” before their league match against Coquimbo Unidos.
According to EFE, this protest was held in commemoration of the first anniversary of the Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip.
The club shared images of the protest on its social networks, where the players are seen holding the banner condemning the attacks in Gaza, with the message: “One year of Genocide, 76 of occupation.”
Despite the possibility of being sanctioned by the Chilean National Professional Football Association (ANFP), the team decided to move forward with this demonstration. In the past, they had been punished for similar expressions of support for the Palestinian cause.
The team’s relationship with the Palestinian cause is not coincidental, as Chile is home to the largest Palestinian diaspora outside the Arab world, with approximately 500,000 people.
In 2014, the ANFP sanctioned the club for wearing a uniform in which the number “1” was designed as a map of Palestine, which was interpreted as a political gesture, provoking criticism from pro-Israeli groups in Chile.
Since then, Chilean soccer authorities have closely monitored any such expression by the club.
Although the ANFP has not yet issued an official statement on possible sanctions following this latest act, precedents indicate that Palestine could once again face a controversial situation.
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