Iraq Fencers Quit World Championship to Avoid Facing Israeli Opponents
The championship is underway in Istanbul, Turkey, and is a qualifier for the Paris Olympics.
The Iraqi team withdrew from the individual races after the draw pitted it against the Israeli regime, Al-Ahed News reported.
The Iraqi fencing federation said in a statement posted on its Facebook page that the decision was made given a law passed by the Arab country’s parliament to criminalize and ban any attempt at normalizing ties with the occupation regime.
It was also a move in solidarity with the cause of Palestine, the statement said.
The Iraqi team will compete in the team matches, the federation added.
Earlier, Kuwaiti fencer Abdul Aziz al-Shati withdrew from the fencing championship in Istanbul in order not to compete against an Israeli opponent.
Anti-Israeli sentiments run high in Arab countries like Iraq and Kuwait.
A poll conducted in 2019 by the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, an American think tank, showed that 85 percent of Kuwaitis oppose normalizing ties with Israel.
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