The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is under the knife for taking no action against banning Israel from the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris. People have started to compare Israel to Russia, and how Russian players will be playing without their flag due to the ongoing war with Ukraine.
Last month, the IOC banned the Russian Olympic Committee for two reasons: (1) abrogation of Olympic Truce, which encourages countries to refrain from war with countries who participate in the Games (2) breaching the Olympic Charter, taking over Ukraine’s “regional sports organizations”.
Comparing the Russian situation to the Israel-Palestine war, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has condemned Israel’s “clear violations of international humanitarian law” in Gaza and demanded an instant cease-fire. Russia will not be eligible to receive broadcast and sponsorship finances due to the ban. Their athletes wouldn’t be able to wrap around their flag and listen to the country’s national anthem, so why should Israel not face the same?
Israel has previously caused damage to the football infrastructure in Palestine, along with damaging the lives of Palestinian footballers. These acts fall under the clause that got Russia banned from the upcoming Olympics.
On a side note, the IOC is considering banning Afghanistan from the Paris Olympics due the gender inequality in the country. IOC believes that women aren’t given the same opportunities as men, not allowing women to go to school, which might result in a ban.
