Overview
- Jibril Rajoub declined to shake hands with Israel FA vice president Basim Sheikh Suliman during Thursday’s FIFA Congress in Vancouver after both men addressed delegates.
- FIFA president Gianni Infantino tried to stage a photo-friendly gesture and urged cooperation, but Rajoub refused, saying "we are suffering" and later accusing Israel of violations that he said warrant sanctions.
- The Palestine Football Association has appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport after FIFA in March declined to suspend Israel over clubs in West Bank settlements, even as FIFA fined the Israel FA about $190,000 in a separate discrimination case.
- Israeli officials avoided the settlement dispute in their remarks and said they want projects that build bridges, with the IFA’s leadership saying they are ready to work with Palestinian counterparts.
- The confrontation capped a charged congress that also saw Iran’s delegation absent and protests outside, and it renewed scrutiny of FIFA’s capacity to enforce human-rights standards when member federations claim overlapping jurisdiction.