Palestine’s captain has said his team has fulfilled “a promise to the Palestinian people” after reaching the Asian Cup knockout rounds for the first time, TRT World reports.

The 3-0 victory over Hong Kong on Tuesday was also their first win in the history of the competition and enough to squeeze into the last 16 as one of the four best third-placed teams.

Oday Dabbagh was the hero in Doha with two goals, and at the final whistle, Palestine’s players and staff celebrated on the pitch, hugging and waving flags.

Palestine’s victory came against the backdrop of Israel’s brutal war on besieged Gaza. Players and staff have lost loved ones to the Israeli aggression.

Captain Musab Al-Battat said that his men had made good on “a promise we made to the Palestinian people”.

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