Italy’s prime minister had held one of the most steadfastly pro-Israel lines in Europe, backing Israel’s “right” to self-defence after the October 7 attack. That is why it matters that, addressing the 81st UN General Assembly, she declared that Israel had crossed the line from fighting terrorism into a massacre of civilians in Gaza. She even announced that Italy would back possible European sanctions against this genocidal state. Emmanuel Macron said much the same.
Of course, these interventions come painfully late: three years after October 7, while the slaughter in Gaza and the West Bank has never stopped.
Some countries, though, saw from the very first moment that Israel had no intention of self-defence (nor any right to it). What it had in mind was an invasion: a campaign of ethnic cleansing it has been waging in the Middle East for decades. Ireland was one of those countries, which is why a football match has been in the spotlight these past few days. From the moment Ireland and Israel were drawn in the same Nations League group, the debate began over whether the Irish should take the field at all in the two games between the sides. In a poll by an Irish newspaper, 71 per cent of respondents said the team should not play, even if it meant being punished.
The Ireland manager put it plainly: “We’re not playing with genocide, we’re playing against genocide.” Against Israel, he said, not with Israel. That put the Icelander squarely in Israel’s crosshairs too, and the Taoiseach was forced to back him publicly.
The decision had been made. The Irish took the field against Israel at a neutral ground in Serbia, with no fans present, “for security reasons”. They wore black armbands, refused the customary handshake with their opponents and bowed their heads during Israel’s national anthem. When Jack Moylan scored the third goal, he pulled off his armband and held it up: an unmistakable message condemning the genocide in Palestinian Gaza.
Ireland’s team, right down to goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu, who refused to play, showed that football does not exist in a bubble, sealed off from injustice, oppression, war and everything else happening in the world. Because the Irish know a thing or two about colonialism and massacres, having lived through English tyranny, occupation and fascism themselves. And so mighty Ireland’s 3-0 means something far bigger, even if UEFA insists on bending over backwards for genocidal Israel.
