Uefa must ban Israel after UN genocide report, say top legal scholars
میدل-ایست-آی - 1404-07-11 16:55:47
Uefa must ban Israel after UN genocide report, say top legal scholars
A group of eminent international lawyers and human rights experts on Thursday called on Uefa to impose an “immediate and complete ban” on Israeli football to fulfil its legal obligation to act in the face of the Gaza genocide.
In the letter to the president of European football's governing body, Aleksander Ceferin, the authors ground their appeal in the UN report released last month that concluded Israel has committed and is committing genocide in Gaza.
The letter also cited the advisory opinion by the International Court of Justice in July 2024, which confirmed the illegality of Israel's occupation and the duties of third states not to recognise it.
“A ban is imperative in response to the United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry’s report … which provides irrefutable evidence that Israeli authorities have committed genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, all in violation of peremptory norms of international law,” the letter said.
The signatories contended that those findings trigger Uefa’s responsibilities under the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
“Uefa must not be complicit in sports-washing such flagrant breaches of international law,” they added.
The letter argued that Uefa and all its members must now ban Israeli football, including banning its national teams, club teams and players, from participating in its competitions, "until justice and accountability is achieved for Palestine and all Palestinians".
The letter lists extensive documented harms to Palestinian football since October 2023, including Israel’s killing of at least 421 Palestinian footballers and the systematic destruction of Gaza’s football infrastructure, including stadiums and the headquarters of the Palestinian Football Association.
'I think we're so close to a win in this, in a way that they'd never expected'
- Ashish Prashar, Game Over Israel campaign director
“These acts have decimated an entire generation of athletes, eroding the fabric of Palestinian sport,” the signatories said.
“The failure of the Israel Football Association (IFA) to challenge these violations implicates it in this system of oppression, rendering its participation in Uefa competitions untenable.”
The signatories argue that a suspension would be consistent with past practice, in reference to the ban on Russian teams following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
“Banning the IFA aligns with precedents set by Uefa against nations committing similar grave breaches, ensuring the integrity of international sport,” the letter said.
The signatories also criticised the recently announced 20-point ceasefire plan for Gaza by US President Donald Trump, saying that Uefa’s obligations to ban IFA continue to apply.
“While the plan purports to offer a pathway to peace, in reality it undermines international law, Palestinian sovereignty, and the principles of self-determination,” the scholars said.
“It does not impose any obligations on the State of Israel, as the occupying power in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem. It also fails to address the legal consequences of the genocide in Gaza or make any demands of Israel to provide reparations to the Palestinians,” the letter addded.
“By continuing to host Israeli teams, Uefa risks becoming complicit in the normalisation of war crimes.”
Among the signatories are several of the most prominent figures in international law, including genocide expert William Schabas; John Dugard, former UN special rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories; Richard Falk and Michael Lynk, also former UN special rapporteurs; and Guy Goodwin-Gill of the University of Oxford, a leading authority on refugee law.
Other signatories include Queen’s University’s Ardi Imseis, Boston University’s Susan M Akram, legal scholar and Soas reader in public law Nimer Sultany, former legal adviser to Palestinian peace negotiators Diana Buttu, and Craig Mokhiber, who was director of the UN human rights office in New York.
Middle East Eye has asked Uefa for comment.
Uefa vote on hold
The letter reflects mounting international pressure to suspend Israel from international sports competitions to avoid normalisation of genocide and war crimes.
Following the UN’s genocide report, a panel of UN experts and Amnesty International have also called on Uefa and Fifa to suspend Israel from their tournaments.
Last week, the Times reported that Uefa was due to make a decision this week on the suspension of Israel, and that most executive committee members of the federation were in favour of the ban.
But Trump’s announcement of his Gaza plan days later has put the suspension vote on hold, Sky News later reported.
Campaigners behind the letter told MEE they are optimistic Uefa will suspend Israel "in the coming weeks".
"I think we're so close to a win in this, in a way that they'd never expected," said Ashish Prashar, a former adviser to the Middle East peace envoy and the campaign director of Game Over Israel.
For two weeks, Prashar's campaign has been mobilising activists and public figures to endorse its demands and call for a football boycott of Israel. It sponsored a billboard last week in New York's Times Square that said: “Israel is committing genocide. Soccer federations: Boycott Israel.”
Even if a ceasefire is agreed, the campaigners believe the ban should still go ahead.
Israel has been a member of Uefa since 1994.
Despite doubts over whether Fifa will ban Israel due to Trump's close relationship with its president, Gianni Infantino, suspension by Uefa would make it extremely unlikely that Israel would qualify for the 2026 World Cup in North America because it would not be able to play European qualifying games.
It would also mean that Israeli clubs and the national team would be barred from all European competitions, including the Champions League, Europa League and Conference League, as well as the European Championships.
This would cut off access to lucrative broadcasting revenues, sponsorships, and prize money tied to Uefa tournaments.
Suspension would also prevent Israeli referees and officials from taking part in Uefa matches and events, leaving the country isolated from the European footballing community.
