A football player from Israel has been detained in Turkey following an incident during a match, as reported by Turkish media.
The player, Sagiv Jehezkel, was previously investigated for suspected “incitement to hate” and was dismissed by his club, Antalyaspor.
This follows an event where, after scoring a goal against Trabzonspor, Jehezkel displayed a message on a bandage on his wrist that read “100 days. 07/10.” This message was interpreted as referencing the attack by Hamas on Israel on October 7 and the duration that over 130 Israeli hostages have been held in Gaza.
The ongoing conflict in the region, including Israeli military actions against Hamas, has resulted in the death of at least 23,000 individuals in Gaza, predominantly women and children, according to figures from the Hamas-led health ministry.
“The Antalya public prosecutor’s office has opened a judicial investigation against Israeli footballer Sagiv Jehezkel for public incitement to hate due to his odious celebration in favor of the massacre committed by Israel in Gaza,” said Turkish Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc in a post online.
“We will continue to support the oppressed Palestinians,” he added, denouncing what he described as ongoing “genocide” in Gaza.
Antalyaspor pointed out that it had sacked the Israeli player, accusing him of having “acted against the values of our country”.
Since the start of the conflict, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has repeatedly described Israel as a “terrorist state”, insisting Hamas is a “group of liberators.”
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) declared that the Gaza Strip has completed 100 days of a severe humanitarian crisis, characterized by death, destruction, and displacement.
The situation in Gaza is a human-made disaster, the agency emphasizes, with the Palestinian population facing extreme adversity.
