The president of the Palestinian Football Federation, refused to shake hands with the vice-president of the Israel Federation, Basim Sheikh Suliman, this Thursday (April 30, 2026), at a FIFA (International Football Federation) congress. Both countries have been in armed conflict since October 2023, despite a ceasefire signed in 2025.
The 2 leaders were called to the stage by the entity’s president, Gianni Infantino. Rajoub avoided the handshake even after a gesture from Infantino for him to approach the Israeli representative.
At the moment, Infantino defended cooperation between the parties. “Let’s work together to give children hope. These are complex issues”he stated.
Today, the miserable Infantino, president of FIFA, has tried to force the president of the Palestinian Football Federation, Jibril Rajoub, to shake hands with the Zionist president of the Federation of Israel who exterminates the people of Palestine. The Palestinian president rejected it
— Fonsi Loaiza (@FonsiLoaiza)
DISPUTE INVOLVES CLUBS IN THE WEST BANK
The episode takes place during a dispute between the federations over the activities of Israeli clubs in settlements in the West Bank, territory claimed for a future Palestinian state.
The Palestinian federation argues that teams based in these areas do not compete in competitions organized by Israel. Last week, the entity appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport against FIFA’s decision not to apply sanctions.
FIFA previously said it will not take action against the Israeli federation or its clubs, citing the West Bank’s undefined legal action under international law.
DECLARATIONS AND REPERCUSSION
After the episode, the vice-president of the Palestinian federation, Susan Shalabi, that the refusal was deliberate and reflected the entity’s political position. “We cannot shake hands with someone the Israelis brought in to cover up their fascism and genocide. We are suffering”he declared.
According to Shalabi, the attempt to promote compliance undermined the speech made by Rajoub shortly before. She stated that the Palestinian leader had dedicated around 15 minutes to defending respect for international rules and warning of possible violations involving national associations.
