Former Premier League attacker becomes the first player to be sacked for his support for Palestine
Bundesliga club Mainz FC terminated Anwar El Ghazi’s contract yesterday over his now deleted post in support of Palestine.
The Dutch Muslim ace was initially suspended by the club last week after he posted the following on his instagram amid the Israel-Palestine conflict. The German club suspended him over the post.
On Monday, the club said his suspension was lifted and that he would receive a reprimand.
Mainz said that followed talks with the management and that El Ghazi “regrets publishing the post and also was remorseful about its negative impact.”
However, El Ghazi publicly refuted Mainz’s statement and claimed that has no regrets over his previous post.
He wrote:
“For the avoidance of doubt, my statement on 27 October 2023 was my only and final statement both to FSV Mainz 05 and the public relating to the social media posts made by me over the last few weeks.”
“Any other statement, comments or apologies to the contrary attributed to me are not factually correct and have not been made or authorised by me. My position remains the same as it was when this started.
“I am against war and violence. I am against the killing of all innocent civilians. I am against all forms of discrimination. I am against Islamophobia. I am against anti-Semitism. I am against genocide. I am against apartheid. I am against occupation. I am against oppression.”
“I do not regret or have any remorse for my position. I do not distance myself from what I said and I stand, today and always until my last breath, for humanity and the oppressed.”
— Anwar El Ghazi (@elghazi1995) November 1, 2023
After this public statement, the German club terminated the player’s contract who had just joined them on a free transfer in the September.
In response to the termination of his contract, he posted the following message:
“Stand for what is right, even if it means standing alone.”
“The loss of my livelihood is nothing when compared to the hell being unleashed on the innocent and vulnerable in Gaza.”
— Anwar El Ghazi (@elghazi1995) November 3, 2023
The former Aston Villa and Everton man becomes the first player to be sacked for his support for Palestine during the ongoing situation.
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