RAMALLAH (Palestine), June 4 (Bernama-Anadolu) — The Palestinian Football Association (PFA) on Thursday called for international action and accountability following the arrest of women’s national team player Rand Al-Halawani and former squad player Natalie Abu Diya by Israeli authorities, saying it still has not been informed of the reasons for their detention.
According to Anadolu Ajansi (AA), Israeli authorities on Wednesday extended the detention of Halawani until Friday after summoning her for questioning at the Talpiot police station in West Jerusalem.
A day earlier, authorities arrested Abu Diya, a student at Birzeit University, following a raid on her residence, according to the PFA.
The detention and interrogation procedures are still ongoing, and the grounds cited by Israeli authorities for holding the two players remain unclear, PFA spokesperson Dima Yousef told Anadolu.
She described the arrests of Halawani and Abu Diya as “not an isolated incident,” but rather part of a “systematic targeting of Palestinian athletes.”
Yousef said the detentions constitute “a clear violation of FIFA regulations and the principles that guarantee the protection of athletes.”
She stressed the need for an effective international response to halt violations against Palestinian athletes and hold those responsible accountable.
“We demand genuine international action and accountability for the Israeli authorities responsible for the arrest of the two players,” she said, arguing that continued international silence only entrenches violations against Palestinian athletes.
Yousef added that the Palestinian Football Association intends to take formal steps at the international level to pursue the case and document it as part of the violations files submitted to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
“Our message to the world is clear and direct: Freedom for Rand, freedom for Natalie, and justice for Palestinian football,” Yousef added, stressing that their detention is part of a broader pattern of violations affecting the Palestinian sports movement.
According to figures provided by Yousef, 1,008 members of Palestinian sports federations, clubs and youth and scouting organisations have been killed, including 963 men and 45 women, among them players, coaches, administrators, referees and other sports-sector personnel.
PFA recorded the highest number of casualties, with 565 members killed, while 265 sports facilities were damaged, including 184 destroyed completely and 81 partially damaged, she added.
Yousef also said five members of the Palestinian sports and scouting movement remain missing, noting that obtaining precise figures remains difficult, particularly in the Gaza Strip.
Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza since October 2023 has killed nearly 73,000 Palestinians and injured more than 173,000, most of them women and children, according to Palestinian figures.
Despite a ceasefire that took effect on Oct 10, 2025, the Israeli army has killed 936 Palestinians and injured 2,903 in near-daily attacks, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.
— BERNAMA-ANADOLU