FIFA will cover the costs of the rehabilitation of the football pitch of the Palestine Stadium in Gaza after it was damaged in a recent bombardment, FIFA reported on ts official site.
‘In the world of today, which is disrupted by long-lasting disputes and violence, football is one of the very few universal tools mankind can use to bridge gaps between nations and peoples, and to symbolise what unites our planet over what divides it. FIFA's role is not to reprimand, but to help create bonds and ensure that the young people of the region have hope and the possibility to enjoy the school of life that football represents. Therefore, I call on the relevant authorities to do everything they can to allow Palestinian and Israeli football to develop,’ commented the FIFA President.
FIFA, a non-political organisation, has as one of its main objectives the promotion of friendly relations between its members and in society for humanitarian objectives, as stated in the FIFA Statutes. The defence of the right of both Israeli and Palestinian football to develop has been unequivocal on the part of FIFA in the past and will remain so in the future.