Lhe Palestine may not participate in this Football World Cup, but its flag and its keffieh, the traditional headscarf, were very present throughout the competition. The Arab supporters celebrated with the same fervor the exceptional performance of the Moroccan selection and the popular attachment to the Palestinian cause, in a new demonstration of a deep feeling of Arab solidarity, whatever the bilateral disputes and the calculations of the leaders. .
Qatar has done nothing to discourage such momentum, allowing emblems in the colors of Palestine at the entrance to stadiums and broadcasting pro-Palestinian statements on Al-Jazeera. It was during the World Cup that the Qatari channel seized the International Criminal Court for the death of Shireen Abu Akleh, its star Palestinian-American journalist, killed by the Israeli army in May, in the West Bank. But the host country would have had great difficulty in instigating a movement of such magnitude, which largely overflowed its borders.
Palestine at heart remains
The enthusiasm for the Palestinian cause feeds on an Arab sensibility which, at least symbolically, transcends state frameworks. This reality is misunderstood in a Europe which, even united and integrated, rarely sees the supporters of one national team rallying to another by default. However, as one Kuwaiti fan put it, « today I am Moroccan, a few days ago, when they beat Argentina, I was Saudi”.
The Arab public, galvanized by the surprise victory of Saudi Arabia against the team of Messi (Argentina), then vibrated with the success of Tunisia, eliminated in the group stage, before igniting for the Lions of Atlas (the Moroccan team). During the Tunisia-France match (1-0) on November 30, a spectator managed to infiltrate the stadium with a Palestinian flagto the cheers of the crowd chanting « Palestine, Palestine ». As for the Moroccan supporters, one of their songs has a very militant tone: “O our dear Palestine, where are the Arabs, are they asleep? We will not abandon you Gaza, even if you are so far away, oh Rafah, oh Ramallah, the Arab world is sick. »
The solidarity displayed with Palestine, far from being a blank check for the regimes in place, is anything but anecdotal. This is particularly true for the Moroccan team, transformed into champions of the entire Arab world on the occasion of this World Cup. Israel, where the large community of Moroccan origin is won over to the Atlas Lions, has nevertheless congratulated Morocco at each stage of the competition. But the Moroccan selection marked its exploits against Spain, defeated on penalties, on December 6, then against Portugal (1-0), four days later, by collectively posing with the Palestinian flag.
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