ICJP condemns killing of Palestinian goalkeeper by Israel

The International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP) strongly condemns the killing of Palestinian goalkeeper Saleem Khader Al-Ashqar by Israeli forces. It’s an act that underscores Israel’s targeted and indiscriminate killing of Palestinian sporting figures and civilians.

Confirmed this week by the Palestine Football Association, the 32-year-old Al-Ashqar was shot by Israeli forces in the town of al-Qarara outside of Khan Younis in southern Gaza.

He was a goalkeeper for Khadamat Khan Younis and had also played for Gaza’s Al-Aqsa and Al-Musaddar clubs. At the time of his killing, Al-Ashqar was awaiting the birth of his first child with his wife of five months.

His killing brings the number of Palestinian sports figures killed since the start of the genocide to at least 1,009, including 567 from the football community. That’s according to the Palestine Football Association, which has also filed a complaint with FIFA, seeking Israel’s expulsion from the organisation.

FIFA’s continued failure to take action over Israeli football clubs based in illegal settlements is an affront to its own statutes. These clearly outline that FIFA members cannot play games in the territory of another association without permission.

The International Court of Justice advisory opinion of July 2024 unambiguously asserts that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory is unlawful, that settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory are illegal and that Israel’s presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territories must rapidly end.

Órlaith Roe, ICJP’s public affairs and communications officer, said:

As the world’s attention remains fixed on the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the United States and FIFA celebrates football as a force for unity, inclusion, and respect, Palestinian footballers continue to be killed with impunity by Israel.

FIFA’s continued inaction is not neutrality, but a brutal betrayal of its own statutes and the values it claims to uphold.

Featured image via the Canary