Many in Chile’s Jewish community are outraged over a Palestinian soccer club’s jersey that depicts all of Israel as Palestinian land.
Club Deportivo Palestino of Chile released its new jersey that includes the number “1’’ in the shape of Israel and the Palestinian territories, implying all of the land is Palestinian, The Associated Press reported.
The president of Chile’s Jewish Community, Gerardo Gorodischer, is demanding an apology from the club and asking Chile’s soccer association to pull the jerseys.
“We know that FIFA prohibits such actions,” he told reporters Monday, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency reported. “You cannot make a political claim and import the Middle East conflict using the platform of football, using the sport to lie and hate.”
Chile’s Palestinian Federation said it supports the club’s jerseys.
“We reject the hypocrisy of those who blame this map, but they talk about the occupied territory as disputed territory,” it said in a statement Monday.
• Jessica Chasmar can be reached at jchasmar@washingtontimes.com.
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