Palestinians say high-profile football playoff threatened

GAZA CITY (Palestinian Territories): The fate of a high profile Palestinian football match was in doubt Friday with Gaza officials saying Israel was barring players from travel to the West Bank, a charge denied by the Jewish state.

Following Thursday's goalless draw between Al-Ahli from the West Bank city of Hebron and Gaza's Shejaiya -- their first in 15 years -- a second leg was planned for Sunday in Hebron.

West Bank and Gaza Strip teams play in separate leagues, in which Al-Ahli and Shejaiya emerged as champions. The winner will be eligible to represent Palestine in international competitions.

But the Palestinian Football Association's Gaza representative said Friday that Israel had barred three members of the Shejaiya team from crossing its territory to reach the West Bank.

"Shejaiya club told us they would not play the return leg because Israel refused permits to players Omar al-Arir, Mayssara Bawab and Hashem al-Abed Rabbo," Ismail Matar told AFP.

The club itself said the number of players barred was in fact seven and that nobody would play unless all were granted permits.

But the Israeli defence ministry's unit that coordinates with Gaza, COGAT, told AFP it had approved every one of the applications.

The Gaza Strip, with which Israel fought a devastating 50day war last summer, and the West Bank are only 60 kilometres (40 miles) apart but separated by politics and Israeli territory.

Islamist movement Hamas rules Gaza, which is under a strict Israeli blockade, while the rival Palestinian Authority of president Mahmud Abbas is based in the West Bank.

Matar said the Palestinians had informed football's world governing body FIFA of the problem in an effort to put pressure on Israel.

Restrictions on the movement of players is one of the reasons the Palestinians have pushed FIFA, of which Palestine has been a member since 1998, to sanction Israel. - AFP