ZURICH: FIFA has put off a decision on a Palestinian bid to suspend Israel from international soccer until after the Paris Olympics, saying both parties had requested more time to submit their positions.

The Palestinian Football Association (PFA) had submitted a proposal to suspend Israel in May over the war in Gaza, with FIFA ordering an urgent legal evaluation and promising to address it at an extraordinary meeting of its council in July.

Football’s global governing body said on Thursday the legal assessment would now be shared with its council by Aug 31.

“Following requests for extension from both parties to submit their respective positions, duly granted by FIFA, more time is needed to conclude this process with due care and completeness,” FIFA said on its X account.

The Paris Olympics will be held from July 26-Aug. 11, with group matches for the men’s football tournament starting on July 24.

Israel qualified for the men’s tournament and play Mali, Paraguay and Japan in the group phase.

The Palestinian Football Association (PFA) said it had received FIFA’s letter on Thursday, informing it of the postponement. The PFA said it had sought clarification from FIFA on the process for handling the legal opinion.

“The FIFA letter did not specify the mechanism by which the independent legal opinion will be handled by the council when presented,” the PFA said in a statement on Friday. “The Palestinian Football Association has previously requested clarifications from FIFA regarding this matter multiple times.”

A report this week by lawyers who specialise in international law called on FIFA to ban Israel for violating several of FIFA’s statutes related to human rights and humanitarian objectives.

Since an Oct 7 cross-border raid by militant group Hamas that Israel says killed more than 1,200 people, Israel’s Gaza offensive has left more than 38,000 Palestinians dead, according to Gaza health officials.

Critics have accused Israel of committing genocide against Palestinians, which Israel denies.

Israel says its strikes are targeted at militants and aimed at preventing another attack like the one on Oct 7.

Published in Dawn, July 20th, 2024