Pro-Palestinian protesters reach Italy's soccer training center to oppose game vs. Israel

Audio By Carbonatix

FLORENCE, Italy (AP) — Pro-Palestinian Protesters approached the gates of the Italy soccer team's training center on Friday to demand its upcoming World Cup qualifier against Israel is not played because of the war in Gaza.

The protest was part of a national strike also reacting to an aid mission blocked by Israeli forces.

Italy is scheduled to host Israel in Udine on Oct. 14. But UEFA is considering suspending Israel over the war. The players were not at the Coverciano training center in Florence, but the squad will convene there on Monday.

Protesters appeared to behave peacefully on the opposite side of the street from the soccer complex, holding aloft a banner that read in Italian, “Let’s stop Zionism with the resistance." A protest leader grabbed a microphone and shouted, “How can you still allow Israel, a Zionist and criminal state, to play soccer games?”

Dozens of protests have erupted across Italy since Wednesday night, after the Israeli navy intercepted the Global Sumud Flotilla, detaining its activists.

On Friday, workers and students took to the streets after the country’s largest unions called for a one-day general strike in solidarity with the Palestinians and the flotilla. Hundreds of trains were cancelled or delayed, as were several domestic flights, and many private and public schools closed.

___

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer