Thread by @ciarantierney

If you are neutral in the face of injustice, you are taking the side of the oppressor and the Irish football authorities can no longer stick their heads in the sand about hosting #Israel in the Nations League in October.

A thread.

1/15

As a former colony, in a land which experienced a man-made famine, we cannot just pretend this is "normal" when our international team is asked to play a country which has massacred thousands of young people, including footballers, in a place half the size of Co. Louth.

2/15

Irish football people have deep ties with Palestine and I was part of a group who welcomed kids from #Gaza, the Al-Hillal academy, to a @GalwayUnitedFC game against @DundalkFC in August 2016. Almost ten years ago now.

3/15

Not only were the little boys from Gaza guests of honour on the night, they cried with joy when the main stand erupted into chants of "Stand up for the Gaza boys!" during the second half of an exciting 2-1 victory for the #Galway club.

4/15

Shortly after the game, they were filled with wonder when they were taken to a special room to meet the President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins.

The club chairman, Ayed, was full of dreams of regular trips to Ireland and links to Irish clubs for his wonderful academy.

5/15

The kids were unbelievably skillful, winning all their games across Ireland, but Irish host families were also struck by how small and undernourished they were compared to Irish kids of the same age.

6/15

While they came back to Ireland in 2017, since then they've experienced visa denials and denial of the right to travel.

Their dreams of partnering with Irish clubs were shattered by the Israeli blockade which has cut #Gaza off from the outside world since 2007.

7/15

Most of the boys who came to Galway were traumatised by the 2014 Israeli military assault on the Gaza Strip. More than 2,250 Palestinians, including 551 children, lost their lives. So trauma was nothing new to these children before October 7, 2023.

8/15

I tried to stay in touch with Ayed.

But communication with the Al-Hillal kids, who come from all over #Gaza, was impossible for the academy when entire streets were being bombed and families run out of their homes, forced to sleep in tents, attacked by terror drones.

9/15

Last year, word emerged from the Al-Hillal academy that eight of their children had been murdered by #Israel and their ground, which attracted top young players from all over the strip, had been completely destroyed.

10/15

May these boys RIP.

It is hard to imagine the heartbreak and despair of the coaches, mentors, and volunteers who allowed these talented children to dream of a better life.

Other academies in #Gaza like Al Mohtarafeen, have also experienced horrendous loss of talented young lives.

11/15

It is horrendous to think that the people who destroyed so many young lives are being invited to raise their flag, sing their songs, and maybe even celebrate a genocide at the Aviva Stadium on October 4.

The away fans might even include some of the #Gaza war criminals.

12/15

Of course, it is not fair that Irish footballers are being forced into this position in the first place, especially as Russia were thrown out of international competitions within weeks of the invasion of Ukraine.

13/15

Some clubs such as @bfcdublin and @CorkCityFC have had the courage and conviction to stand up and say this game against a country implicated in genocide cannot and should not go ahead.

If @UEFAcom won't act, then @FAIreland have to take a stand.

14/15

What an insult to the murdered child footballers of #Palestine it would be if the game in Dublin is forced to go ahead.

It's time for Irish sportspeople to stand on the right side of history, as they did in ending #Apartheid in South Africa.

It's time to #StopTheGame

15/15

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