Palestine boss: ‘Football and sport is a way of resistance to occupation’
A tour of Dublin and its surrounds since their arrival in the city on Monday has seen the Palestine women’s international team kept busy.
In between visits to Glendalough, the Book of Kells and a reception by President Michael D Higgins, the squad needed to find time to train to prepare for tonight’s historic friendly against Bohemians.
There was even a history lesson in terms of the 123-year-old venue where the sold-out game takes place, the Dalymount Park that’s hosted true greats of the game from Pele to Beckenbauer and Zidane, the same turf that Palestine’s players will grace in the team’s first game in Europe.
“This is history in the making for Palestinians, not just for female players but for our federation, it’s not just about the place they are playing in but the message,” says Deema Said, who ended her own playing career with the national team due to stress of war and then became team manager.
“I played for the national team for 15 years since I was 14 until I was 29. I retired very recently, at the start of the war, I couldn’t do it, it was too much for me on a mental level so I had to stop playing. Hundreds of athletes have been targeted in the last genocide in Gaza, others in the West Bank have been held in prison, lost their limbs, lost their dreams of playing sports so this is why we are playing. These are hard times for all Palestinians but we have to prove we exist, that Palestine will always remain and will never be forgotten.”
Destroyed
The game will be streamed live so in normal times, supporters and the general public back home could watch, but such is the trauma of life in Gaza, with homes destroyed and no electricity, Gazans will struggle to follow events in Dublin, so Said’s players hope their presence can be captured.
“We are here to send a message that as Palestinians we have athletes, we deserve to play and to travel in freedom, we deserve to be treated like every other athlete around the world.
“We know it’s tough for our people to watch but we carry their message, we believe that football and sport is a way of resistance to occupation,” she said.
Restrictions and visa/passport issues mean that not all eligible players are in Dublin.
“We believe athletes should be protected under international law but in our case it’s not been like that. We have injuries, players who could not make it but we want to win, to represent Palestine in the best way possible, hopefully we will manage to come out with a win but this means a lot more than football.”
US-born player Dina Abdeen is relishing this game in Europe as it’s not easy for her to play in Palestine. “A lot of our girls have borders and barriers that don’t allow us to meet in Palestine. Our stadiums, our fields have been demolished in this war. So it is very hard for us to actually train,” Abdeen said.
“It is an honour we are here to spread our message, to show resilience, and to do it for our people. It is so important for us to show our message in Europe.”