Petition against athletics being used to cover up genocide
Maribor - The European Athletics Team Championships in the second and third divisions will take place in Maribor from 24 to 29 June 2025 at the Poljane Athletics Stadium and partly at the Tabor Sports Park, with the participation of the Israeli national team.
The unacceptability of the participation in a sporting event of representatives of a country that has been committing genocide, maintaining an apartheid and occupation regime, and in other ways terrorising Palestinian women and men for decades, has been highlighted by a wide network of organisations and initiatives through a public petition. Israel "(...) ) systematically abuses sport to promote and cover up the international atrocities it commits against the Palestinian population ", which makes any toleration of its participation in such competition an endorsement and normalisation of Israel's systemic violations of international law and human rights and its commission of international atrocities.
The petitioners demand that the organisers withdraw the invitation to the representatives of the State of Israel, adding: "Athletics fans and volunteers are urged now to respond to the calls of Palestinians and Palestinians not to attend the Championships if an Israeli team is participating, and to call on relatives, friends and acquaintances to boycott the Championships. Let sport promote justice, equality for all and solidarity. We will not allow athletics to be used to whitewash the image of Israel, a country accused of genocide and found guilty of committing systemic violations of international law and human rights. Israel should be judged, not applauded!"
The petition is also supported by Initiative Against Militarism.
Text of the petition and more about the initiative and about the responses to it on the webpage of Gibanje za pravice Palestincev [www.palestina.si].