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The original was posted on /r/soccer by /u/MysteriousEdge5643 on 2025-07-25 22:36:29+00:00.
Full article:
“Aladin Hassan, a 25-year-old professional soccer player from the Arab town of Mashhad in northern Israel, says he has been subjected to multiple interrogations and threats by Israeli authorities over his decision to play for the Palestine national team and his current club, Al-Arabi in Qatar. Hassan, a winger, has played for Al-Arabi since February 2024, following a six-month stint with Bnei Sakhnin in Israel’s Premier League. He began playing for the Palestine national team in September 2023.
In an interview with Haaretz, Hassan described how his recent return home from Doha to attend his brother’s wedding turned into a grueling encounter with the Israeli security establishment.
On April 5th, upon arriving at Ben-Gurion Airport from Doha, “I was detained and thoroughly searched by Israeli authorities,” he said. “I was then taken for a lengthy interrogation by the Shin Bet inside the airport that lasted nearly nine continuous hours before I was released. They also confiscated my mobile phone, which they have yet to return.”
Hassan says the targeting didn’t end there. Six days later, he was summoned for further questioning to the Shin Bet office in Nazareth. “The interrogation focused on my representation of the Palestinian national team,” he said. Also, “the officers were visibly angry about my decision to join Al-Arabi SC, accusing me of aligning with what they consider a ‘hostile state,’ referring to Qatar.”
According to Hasan, the investigators issued direct and explicit threats. “A Shin Bet officer told me, word for word: ‘If it were up to us alone, we would have already revoked your citizenship,’” he recalled. “They threatened to strip me of my nationality, to monitor me constantly, and to end my career. I was told I would remain under surveillance indefinitely.”
When Hassan arrived at the airport a few weeks later to return to Qatar, he was again subjected to interrogation and delays. “My family members and close relatives were also threatened because of me,” he added.
In response, the Shin Bet told Haaretz that Hassan was questioned in April 2025 due to suspicions of links to “terrorist elements abroad.” It “categorically denied” Hassan’s claim that his sports career and citizenship were threatened.
Hassan’s account sheds light on what many Palestinian citizens of Israel describe as a broader policy of intimidation and political pressure, especially targeting those who maintain strong ties with Palestinian national identity.
“This isn’t just about me,” Hassan said. “Many Arab athletes and individuals from our community are being harassed. It’s my legal, national and moral right to represent Palestine. It’s also my right to play in Qatar, or any country I choose, and to refuse to represent Israel. The Israeli national team previously approached me, and I declined.”
Hassan believes his case is a “deliberate attempt to prosecute the freedom of political expression and sports diplomacy,” particularly for Palestinian citizens of Israel who face growing scrutiny when participating in national Palestinian platforms, be it in art, culture or sports.
After years of playing on Maccabi Haifa and Beitar Kafr Kanna’s youth teams, Hassan made his professional club debut in 2021 with Hapoel Kaukab before signing with Kafr Qasim and later Hapoel Umm al-Fahm. Hassan briefly played in the Israeli Premier League with Bnei Sakhnin in 2023, before joining Al-Arabi in February 2024. Al-Arabi plays in Qatar’s Stars League, the highest level of professional basketball in the country.
In response to the incident, the Palestinian Football Association (PFA) issued a statement on Tuesday condemning what it described as a “serious violation” against the national team player.
The PFA expressed deep concern over what it called “Israel’s attempts to intimidate and punish athletes who represent Palestine on the international stage” and reaffirmed its support for Hassan and other players facing similar pressure.”