Palestinian FA calls for Israeli ban after FIFA discrimination report

The Israel Football Association was fined by FIFA for racism and discrimination breaches following Palestinian report.The Palestinian Football Association (PFA) on Tuesday called for the Israeli Football Association (IFA) to receive a ban after a FIFA report found “multiple breaches” of its anti-discrimination obligations.“We maintain our right and continue our efforts to ensure that the Israeli Football Association is expelled from all international institutions,” PFA chief Jibril Rajoub, who also heads the Palestinian Olympic Committee, said during a news conference in the occupied West Bank city of el-Bireh.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4World Cup security concerns grow in US as funding stallslist 2 of 4Refugee Council questions Australia’s Iran strategy at Women’s Asian Cuplist 3 of 4Cricket: McCullum, Stokes to continue England leadership roleslist 4 of 4IPL champions Bengaluru to keep 11 seats empty in honour of stampede deadend of listFIFA fined the IFA 150,000 Swiss francs ($190,700) for the breaches last week, “a significant decision” according to Rajoub, who said the penalty still “falls short of the minimum required”.Rajoub cited the IFA’s “racist nature”, alleged criminal activity by some Israeli sports officials, and the inclusion of football clubs from Israeli West Bank settlements in the Israeli federation as grounds for a ban.A recent report by the disciplinary committee of world football’s governing body found that the IFA “failed to take meaningful action against Beitar Jerusalem” for “persistent and well-documented racist behaviour”.Rajoub, who is also secretary-general of Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas’s Fatah party’s central committee, said Tuesday that Beitar Jerusalem is “an extreme example of racism, fascism, and discrimination” but that such attitudes are commonplace in Israeli football clubs.On the alleged criminal activity of Israeli sports officials, Rajoub said he was referring to instances of players killed during two years of Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza, and the destruction of many of the Palestinian territory’s sport facilities during the same war.