A giant “Free Palestine” banner unveiled at Paris Saint-Germain's Champions League match against Atletico Madrid was “unacceptable,” French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau said on Thursday.
The banner unfurled by PSG fans on Wednesday night featured a drawing of a map including Israel, the West Bank and Gaza in the colors of the Palestinian keffiyeh scarf, which has become a symbol of support for Palestinian people.
Also on the banner were a character looking like a masked fighter, a tank and a Lebanon flag.
"War on the pitch, but peace in the world,” a message read below the banner.
Asked whether the club should be punished, Retailleau told Sud Radio he does not rule out anything and will ask for explanations from PSG, which has been owned by Qatar Sports Investments since 2011.
“This is unacceptable,” Retailleau said. “UEFA rules forbid political messages, and it is a political message.”
Yonathan Arfi, the president of the Representative Council of the French Jewish institutions said the banner was “scandalous.”
“A map where the state of Israel no longer exists. A masked Palestinian fighter. This is not a message of peace but a call to hatred,” he wrote on X. “The perpetrators of this banner must be punished! Intolerable!”
UEFA rules ban the use of gestures, words, objects or any other means to transmit a provocative message that is judged not fit for a sports event, particularly provocative messages that are of a political, ideological, religious or offensive nature. Financial penalties are typical for a first offense — 10,000 euros ($10,700) for a political banner or disturbances.
The group of PSG hardcore fans responsible for the display, the Collectif Ultras Paris, denied in a statement that they wanted to convey a message of hatred with their banner.
“On the contrary, the message attached is explicit, it is a call for peace between people,” it said.
The group also insisted PSG was not involved in the action.
Retailleau also urged clubs to ensure politics “do not spoil sport, which must always remain a unifying force.” Writing on X, he said if such incidents happen again he would have to consider banning tifos of clubs which don't abide by the rules.
The incident came before France hosts Israel on Nov. 14 in the Nations League. This week, pro-Palestinian supporters protested at the French Football Federation to call for the cancellation of the game.
French authorities confirmed last month that the match would go ahead with fans allowed in the stadium after Italy hosted Israel in the same competition without incident despite security concerns.
The match at the Stade de France will be played against the backdrop of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East which has spread to Lebanon after more than a year-long war in Gaza.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Samuel Petrequin, The Associated Press
