The former Green Party MP and head of the German-Israeli Association, Volker Beck, filed a criminal complaint against Moroccan Nassir Mazraoui, the German Bayern Munich player, because of his post in support of Palestine on social media pages.
Beck said in statements to the German newspaper “Bild” – today, Wednesday – that he had filed a complaint with the Munich police, noting that approving crimes against humanity is a matter that requires punishment.
In a post on social media, Mazrawi called for support for “our oppressed brothers in Palestine,” after the bloody attacks carried out by Israel on the Gaza Strip, which led to the martyrdom of thousands of Palestinians, most of whom were children and women.
Beck explained, “Bayern’s way of dealing with the matter was sad. I hope that the judiciary will make the club’s management realize the dimensions of the incident.”
Bayern’s decision not to punish Mazraoui caused many criticisms of the club from the Central Council of Jews in Germany, as well as the club’s fans association, Kurt Laundar Zurich.
Al-Ghazi and Mainz
In this context, the German club Mainz decided to suspend its striker Anwar Al-Ghazi – again – but this time indefinitely due to his confirmation of his previous position in support of Gaza and calling for an end to the killing in the Strip.
The former player for Ajax and Eindhoven in the Netherlands, Lille in France, Aston Villa and Everton in England, published a post on social media following the beginning of the Israeli aggression on Gaza, in which he denounced the Israeli aggression and said, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be liberated.”
After the post, Mainz decided to suspend Al-Ghazi on the 17th of last month, justifying this by taking “a position on the conflict in the Middle East in a way that is unacceptable to the club.”
Then, last Monday, the German club announced Al-Ghazi’s return to the team, and said that during several conversations with the club’s management, he “distanced himself from his message published on his Instagram account (October 17) and deleted it himself a few minutes later.”
However, the player, who is of Moroccan origin, stressed that “any statement, comment, or apology attributed to me is factually incorrect, and I did not allow it.”
He continued in a post – via his Instagram account – that he does not “regret, and I do not feel any regret for my position. I do not distance myself from what I said or support today, until my last breath, for the sake of humanity and the oppressed,” calling for “an end to the killing in Gaza,” without repeating the formula. From the river to the sea, Palestine will be liberated.”
The club responded, “Al-Ghazi’s statements on social media regarding the club are surprising and incomprehensible,” explaining that the player was on sick leave on Monday.
He added that the club “is studying the facts legally and will then evaluate them.”
