Palestinian footballer battles through tragedy

A highly anticipated match between Al-Sadaqa and Gaza Sports Club, and the seventh week of the season, which held the hallmarks of an early title race. The match was scheduled for October 10, 2023.

Mohamed Balah was ready. He had two goals to his name, the ambition to score a third, and confident steps toward a season of renewed brilliance.

But the morning of October 7th was anything but ordinary.

Balah told the Canary:

We woke up to the sounds of rockets… and in an instant, there was no more league, no more season, no more plans.

Gaza talent struck by geography

Balah is one of the most prominent stars of Palestinian football in recent years. He shone in the Al-Sadaqa jersey, winning both the league and cup titles in the southern governorates, and finishing as runner-up in the competition’s top scorer race, behind the martyred captain Suleiman Al-Obeid. His early talent led to his call-up to the Olympic team in 2014 and 2015, but the Israeli occupation prevented him from traveling to the northern West Bank, thus thwarting his dream of representing his country.

This wasn’t the first time the borders had been closed to him, but it was the first harsh lesson that Palestinian players compete not only on the field, but also for their right to freedom of movement.

In 2017, Balah had a new window of hope when he joined the Jordanian club Al-Ahli. From there, despite the restrictions, the Palestinian Football Association succeeded in securing his participation with the national team, “Al-Fida’i,” allowing him to play his first international match. It was a small victory against a reality of widespread restrictions.

Professionalism expands… then falters

Balah moved between professional experiences in the Sultanate of Oman with Al-Suwaiq, Saham, and Al-Oruba clubs, where he scored crucial goals and accumulated significant experience. He received an offer to move to the UAE league, but the COVID-19 pandemic closed the stadiums and temporarily halted his dream.

He returned to Gaza in 2021 and signed a short-term contract with Al-Sadaqa, scoring seven goals in nine matches. During that time, he got married and began dreaming of a double stability: family life and football.

But a torn cruciate ligament in early 2022 plunged him into the longest test of his career. A year and a half of treatment and rehabilitation before he returned to the pitch in the 2023-2024 season, scoring two goals… before life itself came to a standstill.

From the pitch to the tents

With the outbreak of war, the player’s journey transformed into a harrowing series of displacements: from Gaza to Khan Younis, then to Al-Maghraqa, then back to the besieged Khan Younis, and finally to dilapidated tents in Rafah.

Balah told me:

I lost my home and everything I owned. We sold the car to buy food. We were living without electricity or water, under relentless bombardment.

He made the decision to travel to Egypt in search of temporary safety, hoping his wife would join him within days. But the crossing was closed, and the Rafah invasion preempted all promises. His wife remained stranded in Gaza, where she gave birth to their first child, whom he has yet to see.

Between a father deprived of the moment his son was born and a player robbed of his season, personal tragedy intertwines with collective tragedy.

A comeback from the ashes

In Egypt, Balah refused to let his setback become the end. He embarked on a rigorous physical program and then joined Al Mokawloon Al Arab. In his first official appearance, he scored two goals and contributed to leading the team to the Egyptian Premier League title after scoring several crucial goals.

This wasn’t just a football comeback; it was a declaration of survival.

Later, he moved to the Qatari league with Al Shahaniya, a new professional chapter that revived his old dream: to wear the national team jersey again, but this time with a heavier heart and deeper experience.

A Player… and a Cause

The story of Mohamed Balah is not just about a striker searching for the net, but the biography of a Palestinian athlete battling siege, restrictions, and war, striving to keep his footing on the grass while the land around him crumbles.

He is a player who lost his home, was forcibly separated from his wife and child, and buried entire seasons of his sporting career, but he never buried his dream.

Between a goal in the opponents’ net and a tear held back of a child he never saw born, Mohamed Balah continues on a path not measured by the number of goals scored, but by his ability to run, despite everything.

Featured image via the Canary