Israel’s National Soccer Coach Attacked in Athens Before Soccer Fans Chant ‘F–K Israel, Free Palestine’ at Match

The coach of Israel’s national soccer team was physically assaulted by a pro-Palestinian activist who also shouted “Free Palestine” at him in Athens, Greece, last week before a match between Hapoel Be’er Sheva and their Greek rivals AEK Athens, Israel’s Channel 12 reported. 

Hours before the UEFA Conference League qualifier on July 24 at the OPAP Arena, Ran Ben Shimon and assistance coach Gal Cohen were walking in the streets of Athens, speaking in Hebrew, when a young man approached them and began shouting “Free Palestine.” When the coaches ignored the pedestrian, the man ran toward them and pushed Ben Shimon, before others got involved and removed the assailant from the scene, according to Channel 12. 

“The ugly incident in Athens was handled quickly and efficiently, and I can only regret the ignorance and impudence of that person,” Ben Shimon told the Israeli news outlet. “I doubt if he recognized us as the national team’s coaches at all, and in my opinion, the reason for this is that we are Israelis who spoke Hebrew. I am proud to represent my country everywhere; this certainly will not deter us in the future.”

“We found ourselves in an unpleasant and dangerous situation, because we realized that this young man was not alone and any reaction we had could escalate,” added Cohen. “We got into a taxi and continued to the field.”

During Thursday’s match, anti-Israel soccer fans throughout the stadium loudly chanted “F–k you Israel. Viva [Free] Palestine,” as seen in multiple videos from the scene that were later shared on social media. AEK Athens fans also raised numerous Palestinian flags in the stadium.

AEK Athens won the match 1-0 and will compete against Hapoel Be’er Sheva again this Thursday in another UEFA Conference League qualifier, set to take place at Nagyerdei Stadion in Debrecen, Hungary.

Last week’s assault came amid a wave of recent attacks against Israelis and anti-Israel demonstrations across Greece.

Officials said on Saturday that an Israeli tourist was injured and lost a part of his ear in an alleged antisemitic attack by a group of Syrian migrants at the Bolivar Beach near Athens, Ynet reported. According to the victim, a man approached a group of Israelis and began filming them while shouting “Free Palestine,” “Damn Israel,”, and “I am Hamas,” referring to the Palestinian terrorist group in Gaza.

After the man reportedly threw sand at the group of Israelis, the victim pushed him away. Security personnel at the beach got involved and removed the attacker from the scene, but he returned an hour later and attempted to assault the victim’s wife. When the Israeli man tried to protect her, the attacker bit of a part of his ear. The Israeli tourist was hospitalized for his injury.

“The attacker is under arrest, and we are in contact with the victim and Greek authorities,” said Israel’s Foreign Ministry in a statement cited by Ynet.

On Monday, pro-Palestinian protesters attempted to block an Israeli cruise ship from docking on the Greek island of Rhodes.

Earlier this year, two Israeli citizens were stabbed in a shopping center in Athens after the attackers reportedly heard them speaking Hebrew.

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