Tears streamed down Bisan Abuaita\u2019s face as she reunited with her teammates at Jordan\u2019s Queen Alia Airport in May. <\/p>\n
It was the first time members of the Palestinian women\u2019s soccer team had met since the start of the war in Gaza, an ongoing trauma for Palestinians inside and outside the enclave. <\/p>\n
The team was en route to Dublin, Ireland \u2013 the first time a senior Palestinian women\u2019s team had ever played in Europe. <\/p>\n
This season\u2019s Palestinian-based women\u2019s league was slated to start on October 9, 2023, two days after Hamas\u2019 devastating assault on Israel, that prompted a military campaign that has so far killed tens of thousands of people and displaced more than a million more. <\/p>\n
After months of fearing for their relatives and friends inside Gaza, the team finally got their 90 minutes of solace, kicking off against local Irish club Bohemians FC in May. <\/p>\n
Adding extra significance to the match, it was played on the 76th anniversary of the Palestinian Nakba, or catastrophe, during which approximately 700,000 Palestinians fled their homes or were expelled by Jewish militia groups, in violence that accompanied the founding of the state of Israel in 1948. <\/p>\n
Thousands of Palestinian flag-waving fans filled Dalymount Park, with the proceeds going to charitable organizations to help refugees back home. Irish President Michael Higgins was among those in attendance. <\/p>\n
Just two weeks after the match was played, Ireland would go on to recognize Palestinian statehood, in a coordinated move with two other European nations, Spain and Norway, a decision that was condemned by Israel. <\/p>\n
Ireland is considered one of the most pro-Palestinian nations in Europe, and earlier this year filed an intervention in the genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice. <\/p>\n
The Palestinian side won the match 2-1, but the result was less important than the game itself. <\/p>\n
\u201cLeading the team out was unforgettable,\u201d said 25-year-old captain Mira Natour, a doctor who will soon return to her native Bethlehem in the West Bank, where she works in a government hospital. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a moment that filled me with enormous pride and a heavy sense of achievement. Not just for me, but the entire team and our nation. It was a symbol of our resilience; representing Palestine on the international stage despite all the challenges we face.\u201d <\/p>\n
Teammate Abuaita, who travels between Bethlehem and France to help displaced Palestinian women and children, described the \u201csurreal\u201d moment of being able to return to competitive soccer. <\/p>\n
She had barely kicked a ball since her local club won the Palestinian Cup the previous year. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt felt amazing,\u201d she said. \u201cWearing the kit gives me goosebumps. With what\u2019s happening lately, it\u2019s like double the goosebumps. <\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone was crying when we heard the national anthem (pre-match) because you remember everything and everyone that you\u2019re playing for. Each one of us knows people who are suffering, who (have been) martyred.\u201d <\/p>\n
The Palestinian players traveled to Ireland from far and wide \u2013 some from their homes in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, and others from the global diaspora living thousands of miles from the site of the conflict. <\/p>\n
Five players from the West Bank, including Abuaita, had to drive to Jordan and fly from Amman. There are no airports in the Palestinian territories and the women would have needed a permit to fly from Israel\u2019s Tel Aviv airport. Even though the distance to Jordan\u2019s Queen Alia Airport is relatively short, three separate security checkpoints along the way meant the trip took around 10 hours, Abuaita said. <\/p>\n
But at least they could travel. Since the team\u2019s establishment in 2013, there has yet to be a Palestine women\u2019s team member from Gaza, due to Israel\u2019s blockade of the enclave. <\/p>\n
\u201cUnfortunately, we don\u2019t have players from Gaza on our team. One of the main reasons why is the blockade that was forced upon Gazans since 2007,\u201d said team manager Deema Yousef. <\/p>\n
\u201cThis means citizens cannot leave the strip without a permit granted by the Israeli government, which is extremely hard to obtain,\u201d said Yousef, a representative of the Palestinian Football Association. <\/p>\n
Other players came from the Palestinian diaspora in Germany, Sweden, Canada and Saudi Arabia. <\/p>\n
Eighteen-year-old goalkeeper Charlotte Phillips was born in Canada to a Bahamian father and Palestinian mother. <\/p>\n
Phillips\u2019 grandparents, George and Odette, are Nakba survivors whose family members were killed in front of them, she said. <\/p>\n
They left Jerusalem in the mid-70s and moved to Canada and went on to open a successful Palestinian restaurant in Toronto, said Phillips, now a university student in Toronto. <\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t always fully relate to the struggles,\u201d Phillips said. \u201cI know what it means to be Palestinian in Canada, but I don\u2019t know what it means to be Palestinian living in occupied Palestine. So, playing in a game like that in front of my teta (grandmother) and sidi (grandfather) was so significant to our family history.\u201d <\/p>\n
Nonetheless each meetup of the team, like the match in Ireland, is charged. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt was so incredibly emotional,\u201d Phillips recalled. <\/p>\n
Both Natour and Abuaita described the team\u2019s bittersweet feeling of clocking valuable minutes on the field, while remembering those struggling in war-torn Gaza. <\/p>\n
Abuaita said her team plays as a mark of respect for those killed in the conflict, and as a reminder to the world that Palestinians are still fighting. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe play for all those people who were killed, for those footballers and athletes who were murdered. And for those athletes who are still unable to play, because in Gaza now there\u2019s zero stadiums \u2013 they were all destroyed. Being able to show people we\u2019re here and that we\u2019re still fighting in Palestine is an honor,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
Since the game in Dublin, both the Palestinian men\u2019s and women\u2019s teams have played a handful of international friendly matches, with the former still in contention for a place at the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the US, Mexico and Canada after an impressive outing in the Asian group stages this summer. <\/p>\n
\u201cFootball is a source of hope and unity for our people. It allows us to tell our story \u2013 we are more than just a conflict,\u201d captain Natour said. <\/p>\n
\u201cMost importantly, it inspires the younger generation to dream and strive for a better future, no matter what. When I look at my teammates with diverse backgrounds and unique talents, (I realize) we\u2019re not just athletes but role models and advocates for our country, both on and off the field.\u201d <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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