jibril rajoub

Gaza Strip's Shejaiya's player (green) vies with Hebron's Al-Ahly's player (red) during their return leg football match for the Palestine Cup final, August 14, 2015 at Hussein Bin Ali Stadium in the West Bank city of Hebron.
Hebron's Al-Ahly won 2-1, in the first footballing showdown in 15 years with a team from Israeli-blockaded Gaza to be proclaimed Palestinian champions. Al-Ahly will now represent Palestine, a member of football's world governing body FIFA since 1998, in international competitions. (photo by: Oren Ziv / Activestills.org)

How the Israeli army is deciding Palestine’s soccer championship

The army is preventing seven Palestinians from traveling to the biggest sporting match of the year. By Yoni Mendel It seemed like everything was ready for the first match of the Palestine Cup to be held Tuesday evening at Gaza’s Al-Yarmouk Stadium between Hebron’s Ahly al-Khalil and Shabab Khan Younis. Almost everything, that is. According to…

By +972 Magazine July 26, 2016

Al Ahly fans and team players celebrate after a football match for the Palestine Cup final between Gaza's Shejaia's club and Hebron's Al-Ahly club on August 14, 2015 at Hussein Bin Ali Stadium in the West Bank city of Hebron. Hebron's Al-Ahly won 2-1, in the first footballing showdown in 15 years with a team from Israeli-blockaded Gaza to be proclaimed Palestinian champions. Al-Ahly will now represent Palestine, a member of football's world governing body FIFA since 1998, in international competitions. (Oren Ziv / Activestills.org)

West Bank, Gaza gear up for Palestine’s biggest sporting event

This year’s Palestine Cup, the biggest sporting event in the Palestinian territories, pits Hebron’s Ahly al-Khalil against Shabab Khan Younis. Could reconciliation on the field pave the way for national reconciliation? By Yoni Mendel One of Jibril Rajoub’s greatest achievements as the Chairman of the Palestinian Football Association, if not the greatest, took place a year ago. For the…

By +972 Magazine July 24, 2016

Imprisoned PLO leader Marwan Barghouti (SP Foto/CC BY NC-ND 2.0)

Marwan Barghouti is planning a comeback — from behind bars

He may be serving five consecutive life sentences in an Israeli prison but Marwan Barghouti is the only leader who has a chance to succeed Mahmoud Abbas and unite the Palestinian people. This is how he plans on doing it.

By Menachem Klein April 16, 2016

Latest

Saudi Arabia's Green Falcons. (photo: Nasya Bahfen CC BY-ND 2.0)

Why won’t Saudi Arabia travel to Palestine for a soccer match?

Between implicit recognition of Israel, or simply a desire not to travel through military checkpoints, the Saudi Arabia national team does not want to play against Palestine in Jerusalem. By Yoni Mendel (translated from Hebrew by Sol Salbe) Last April the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur witnessed the Asian draw for the regional groups’ stage…

By +972 Magazine September 29, 2015

Al Ahly fans and team players celebrate after a football match for the Palestine Cup final between Gaza's Shejaia's club and Hebron's Al-Ahly club on August 14, 2015 at Hussein Bin Ali Stadium in the West Bank city of Hebron.
Hebron's Al-Ahly won 2-1, in the first footballing showdown in 15 years with a team from Israeli-blockaded Gaza to be proclaimed Palestinian champions. Al-Ahly will now represent Palestine, a member of football's world governing body FIFA since 1998, in international competitions. (photo by: Oren Ziv / Activestills.org)

PHOTOS: Gaza and Hebron go head-to-head in Palestine’s soccer championship

Gaza’s Ittihad Shejaiya traveled to Hebron’s Hussein Bin Ali Stadium on Friday night for the first Palestine Cup since 2000. But due to Israel’s harsh restrictions on Palestinian movement, the match almost didn’t happen. Text by Yoni Mendel, photos by Oren Ziv / Activestills.org In front of 11,000 fans, and for the first time in…

By Activestills August 15, 2015

Palestinian youth protest in solidarity with soccer player Mahmoud Sarsak, who was held in administrative detention for three years. Nablus, 2012. (Photo by Ahmad al-Baz/Activestills.org)

Expulsion or not, Palestinians can declare victory at FIFA

As the vote on the possible expulsion of Israel from FIFA draws nearer, the Israeli delegation suddenly decides to discuss easing restrictions on Palestinian players, who just yesterday were deemed ‘security threats.’ What gives? At this point, it is unclear whether FIFA will vote to expel Israel from soccer’s international governing body on Friday, or…

By Haggai Matar May 29, 2015

Beitar Jerusalem soocer club fans celebrate in Jerusalem after the team wins the Israeli championships.
Jerusalem, May 14, 2007.
Photo: Tess Scheflan/ Activestills.Org

What Israelis don’t get about attempts to boot Israel from FIFA

It is incomprehensible that one of the premier clubs in Israel doesn’t allow Arab players — because they are Arab. By Asaf Marziano The head of Palestinian Football Federation, Jibril Rajoub, is attempting to have Israel expelled from FIFA, soccer’s international governing body. The topic has been making headlines in Israel and internationally in recent…

By +972 Magazine May 25, 2015

Palestinian youth protest in solidarity with soccer player Mahmoud Sarsak, who was held in administrative detention for three years. Nablus, 2012. (Photo by Ahmad al-Baz/Activestills.org)

When even Israel’s sports reporters ignore Palestinians

It turns out that only threatening measures by the Palestinian Authority make the Israeli media notice Palestinian athletes. By Asaf Marziano A “blind spot” is a kind of built-in flaw in the human eye. This spot exists for all of us, meaning that our view of the world will always lack that certain spot. Because…

By The Seventh Eye April 8, 2015

Shana tova, insha’allah

Rosh Hashana, the Jewish new year, begins this evening – as does Eid al-Fitr, the Muslim festival marking the end of Ramadan. One of the holiday traditions – besides overeating – is the sending of greeting cards. Over recent years, as social media has taken over our lives, personalized greeting cards have been replaced with…

By Lisa Goldman September 7, 2010