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The owner of Polish football club Pogon Szczecin has rejected transfer offers from Israeli side Maccabi Tel Aviv, comparing business dealings with the club to doing business with Nazi Germany, Anadolu Agency reports.
Club owner Alex Haditaghi said on US social media company X that he had informed Maccabi Tel Aviv of his decision not to pursue negotiations over the transfers of defenders Dimitris Keramitsis and Leo Borges.
In a letter addressed to the Israeli club’s president and published on his social media account, Haditaghi said football should symbolize “hope, respect, unity and humanity” and be “more important than politics, borders or divisions.”
However, he said the ongoing suffering of civilians in Gaza, Lebanon, Iran and elsewhere in the region made it inappropriate for his club to conduct business with an Israeli club.
“Considering the ongoing suffering of innocent civilians in Gaza, Lebanon, Iran, and across the region, and considering the violent, genocidal and inhuman actions of the Israeli state, I do not believe it would be morally right for our club to proceed with any business transaction with a club representing Israel at this time,” he wrote.
READ: Palestinian FA chief refuses handshake with Israeli counterpart at FIFA congress
Haditaghi said his responsibilities extended beyond the club’s financial interests to protecting “values, principles and humanity.”
“Had I been alive during the times of Nazi Germany, one of the darkest chapters of history, I would not have done business with any sports club representing Nazi Germany, a regime that was responsible for mass murder and crimes against millions of innocent people,” he wrote.
“Today I have to apply the same moral standard.”
“There are moments when ethics must be stronger than profit and money,” he added.
The offers concerned Keramitsis and Borges, whose contracts with Pogon run until 2029 and 2027, respectively.
READ: Poland blasts ‘stupidity’ of Israeli football fans displaying ‘murderers since 1939’ banner at match
This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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