Former Republic of Ireland midfielder Ray Houghton has criticised the Irish government for failing to back the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) amid the outrage around the upcoming matches against Israel.
Ireland are set to face Israel on Sunday, September 27 and Sunday, October 4 in two Nations League fixtures during the extended three-week international break.
Hallgrimsson's comments and Israeli FA response
During his squad announcement for two matches against Israel, as well as a trip to Kosovo and a home game with Austria, Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrimsson said: "We're not playing with genocide, we're playing against genocide. We're playing against Israel, we're not playing with Israel," when asked about keeping his players focused on the football, rather than on the political standpoint that these matches are facing.
In response to Hallgrimsson's comments on Monday, the Israeli FA hit back in a social media statement, saying: "We have contributed to the world and humanity in countless fields, earning an impressive number of Nobel Prizes along the way.
"Unfortunately, we have not yet found a cure for stupidity, ignorance and hypocrisy displayed by @IrelandFootball team coach. We're not playing with ignorance, hypocrisy and stupidity, we're playing against the coach who embodies them."
Houghton criticises government intervention
Although Irish prime minister Micheal Martin spoke on Tuesday at the United Nations where he criticised the Israeli's attack on Hallgrimsson, Houghton believes it's too little too late. The 64-year-old ex-Liverpool and Fulham man has claimed that the Irish government should have intervened much sooner.
Speaking to the Irish Mirror, Houghton said: "I thought the government would have had more say in it, so that a decision could be taken at a higher level. I thought they would have had a little more input into the situation.
"Who it falls back on are the players. They are the ones that are out there. I hope they do get a bit of sympathy, because a lot of them, if not all of them, won't really want to play it. It's one of those ones, get it over with as quickly as you can and hopefully forget all about it."
Due to the mass criticism surrounding the two matches, Houghton feels the Ireland players have been placed into an "impossible" situation.
"They are damned if they do and they are damned if they don't," he said, speaking on behalf of IrishBetting.ie. "It's one of those things where the players have got to get on with their job. They are playing away from home, there'll be no Irish fans and it's a game that no one really wants, is it?
"If you ask the players honestly, they would probably say they don't want to play either. But there is a commitment from the FAI to play it. I don't know what would happen if they didn't play it, how UEFA would sanction Ireland.
"I think it has been quite clear that the Irish public don't want the game. Not everyone, but the majority.
"A lot of people say to the players, just don't play. But it's a really difficult one, a really difficult story to be a part of. I think the players have been put in a position that they don't want to be in."
Boycott calls and Amnesty condemnation
The armed Palestinian group Hamas attacked Israel on 7 October 2023, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages. In response, Israel launched a military offensive in Gaza, and more than 73,000 people have since been killed, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.
Israel, however, has denied that it has committed genocide, as well as war crimes and crimes against humanity. They feel their military operations in Gaza have been conducted in self-defence and in accordance with international law.
Despite this, more than than 160 Irish sportspeople have signed an open letter by the Irish Sport for Palestine Group to urge a boycott of the games against Israel. Ireland are set to face Israel in Hungary on Sunday before the reverse fixture takes place in Serbia seven days later.
The letter states that the FAI, UEFA and the Irish government should have intervened before this stage, but there is still time to "show the power of sport to unite". Sportspeople including Olympian Ciara Mageean, former Republic of Ireland footballer Louise Quinn, ex-Ireland rugby fly-half Tony Ward have signed it.
As well as that, Amnesty International condemned Israel's inclusion in the Nations League as "a betrayal of Palestinians, football's own rules and human rights."
Steve Cockburn, Amnesty International's Regional Director for Europe, said: "It's unconscionable that the Israel men's football team will participate in the UEFA Nations League this autumn despite clear evidence that Israel's football association continues to support illegal settlements.
"Instead of sending a clear message that there is a cost for Israel's unlawful occupation of the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) and its atrocity crimes against Palestinians, UEFA is giving Israel an international stage as it maintains its brutal occupation of the OPT, its system of apartheid over all Palestinians, and its ongoing genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
"UEFA and FIFA should have suspended the Israel Football Association (IFA) long ago, for its refusal to exclude clubs based in illegal settlements in the OPT. Their continued participation in the Israeli leagues is in brazen violation of FIFA's statutes and is contrary to international law. As the money keeps flowing from FIFA and UEFA to the IFA, they risk contributing to the sustainability of illegal settlements and of Israel's unlawful occupation of the OPT, and therefore Israel's violations of Palestinians' human rights."
