In an interview on the Israeli Basketball Association’s website, Israeli player Dor Saar said before the game: "It’s known that they are quite anti-semitic and it’s no secret, and maybe that’s why a strong game is expected.
“We have to show that we’re better than them and win. We talk about it among ourselves. We know they don’t love us and we will leave everything on the field always and in this game especially.”
Basketball Ireland’s statement prior to the start of the game read: "Basketball Ireland informed Fiba Europe yesterday that as a direct result of recent comments made by Israeli players and coaching staff - including inflammatory and wholly inaccurate accusations of anti-Semitism, published on official Israeli Federation channels - that our players will not be partaking in traditional pre-match arrangements with our upcoming opponents.
Treating people badly because they happen to be from Israel isn’t political commentary.
It’s antisemitism, plain and simple.
You’re doing it right now too! Antisemitism is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews not Israelis. The reason why these players did not want to shake hands with the Israeli team is not because they are Jews, but because they are Israeli. Yes they are refusing to shake hands with them because they are from Israel but its not because they are Jewish. It’s because their country (Israel) is comiting genocide. They would not shake hands with any country that does this
I bet they’d shake hands with the US team, despite the fact that the US killed 50x more Arab civilians in order to “defend their interests” on the other side of the world.
Holding Israel to a standard you don’t apply to any other nation on earth IS antisemitism.
“Whataboutism” defined.
I am sure that if the US was killing as many, as fast, people wouldn’t like them either. The truth is, Israel is killing more people than Russia right now and they are not popular either. Is that antisemitism too?
The UN says that since the start of the war, about 100,000 people in Gaza have been killed, injured or are missing.
What the fuck are you talking about? That’s not why they didn’t shake hands. They were accused of antisemitism by an Israeli player, who refused to elaborate, and that’s the reason the Irish team refused to shake hands.
You didn’t read the article obviously. And/or have an axe to grind
It’s anti nationalist, your equation of isreali = semites is actually the bigoted statement.
The same behaviour was shown towards Russian athletes with regards to the invasion of Ukraine. Judging by your logic that would be, idk, anti-orthodox? Russophobic? It’s symbolic and has nothing to do with the their opinion of the people they are competing against. It’s not antisemitism, plain and simple.
If you’d read the article you’d know the Israeli team called them anti-semites first.
That’s because they foresee the future. Placing bets must be very easy for them
So what was it when the US boycotted the 1980 Olympics? Just unmitigated, unfocused meanness?
no it isn’t