‘Israeli’ forces arrest Palestine women’s footballer Rand Halawani in Jerusalem
- ‘Israeli’ authorities arrested Palestine women’s national team player Rand Halawani after summoning her for questioning in occupied Jerusalem.
- The arrest came hours after the detention of former national team player Natalie Abu Diah and the travel ban imposed on footballer Musab Abu Salem.
‘Israeli’ authorities arrested Palestine women’s national team player Rand Halawani on Tuesday after summoning her for questioning at a police station in occupied Jerusalem, according to the Palestine Football Association.
Halawani, 20, was taken into custody following the interrogation, the association said in a statement.
The association said the arrest came only hours after ‘Israeli’ forces detained former Palestine women’s national team player Natalie Abu Diah during a raid on her university residence in Birzeit, north of Ramallah.
Abu Diah studies media at Birzeit University, according to the statement.
In a separate incident, ‘Israeli’ authorities prevented Palestine Stars team player Musab Abu Salem from traveling to Italy with his national team delegation.
The player was stopped at the King Hussein Bridge Crossing, questioned, and later issued a travel ban, preventing him from participating in a solidarity match against SSC Napoli.
The Palestine Football Association described the arrests and travel restrictions as part of ongoing actions targeting Palestinian athletes and sports institutions, calling for international attention to the impact of such measures on Palestinian sports participation.
