Turkish authorities have decided to expel the Israeli midfielder of the Antalyaspor football club Sagiv Yehezkel, who was detained after a match in Antalya on charges of “publicly inciting hostility and hatred,” TRT Spor said, Report informs via TASS.
During the Antalyaspor-Trabzonspor match on January 14, after scoring a goal, Yehezkel pointed to the armband on his arm with the inscription "100 days. 7.10" and an image of the Star of David. The inscription meant the 100th day of Israel’s war against Hamas, which began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas militants attacked Israel, crossing the border in several directions and subsequently killing 1,200 Israelis, mostly civilians. Following this, the club’s board of directors expelled the player from the team. Antalyaspor explained its decision by saying that Yehezkel “acted against the national values” of Türkiye.
According to TRT Haber, the footballer and his family will leave Türkiye on Monday. A private plane has already arrived from Israel to pick them up.