AA / Stuttgart / Mesut Zeyrek, Ömer Aşur Çuhadar, Beraa Göktürk
Caps on which the shape of a slice of watermelon is embroidered in the red, white, green and black colors of the Palestinian flag were distributed to supporters before several matches of the European Football Championship (Euro 2024) organized in Germany.
The caps were distributed before the matches of Spain and Italy in Gelsenkirchen on Thursday, Türkiye and Portugal in Dortmund on Saturday and Scotland and Hungary in Stuttgart on Sunday.
Speaking to Anadolu, Turkey’s Mehmet Simsek said he wanted to make his voice heard about the injustice the Palestinian people are exposed to, emphasizing that Muslims must be responsible and act in favor of the Palestinian Cause.
And added: “The people who are committing this genocide today were themselves victims of genocide in the past.”
Simsek also said that after distributing some of the caps, the police prevented the distribution of the rest, explaining that around 50,000 caps had been made: “They told us that these hats had no place here and we couldn’t distribute them.
** Distribution of caps to supporters of the Türkiye-Portugal match
“Watermelon” caps were also distributed to supporters who attended the match between Türkiye and Portugal, which took place in Dortmund last Saturday.
Wahid al-Din Biram, one of the organizers of the event, told Anadolu correspondent that he distributed the hats symbolizing the Palestinian flag, to draw the attention of Europeans to the injustice taking place in the Strip. Gaza.
He added: “We tried as much as possible to collaborate with businessmen here on the Palestinian issue. We initially produced 10,000 caps, before increasing production to 50,000 caps in total. Distribution of the caps will continue until the end of the European Championship”, while thanking everyone who participated in this event.
The German representative of Turkish origin in the Parliament of North Rhine-Westphalia, Volkan Baran, attended the match between Türkiye and Portugal and took one of the caps symbolizing the Palestinian Cause: “The world should not close the eyes on what is happening in Palestine,” he said.
“Approximately 40,000 to 45,000 innocent people died. An attack was carried out on Israel, but unfortunately the response was very disproportionate,” he stressed, adding: “The United Nations has asked Israel to stop war by decision of the International Court of Justice, but Israel has not complied with it.
Baran expressed his belief that the international community would raise its voice and put an end to this situation, and that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “will be judged as soon as possible, with half of the Israeli people on the streets protesting the government.”
** Great public interest in “watermelon” caps
The caps were distributed in the city center and then in front of the stadium where the match was taking place, with great interest from supporters.
After receiving a hat, Aise Khan said that the Turkish people always stand with the Palestinians and join the boycott wave in support of Gaza.
For his part, Benjamin Donmez claimed to have put the hat on his head to show his support for the Palestinian people who are suffering Israeli injustice.
** Distribution of caps to Scottish and Hungarian supporters
A message of solidarity with the Gazans was also sent to supporters who came to attend the Scotland-Hungary match in Stuttgart, through the distribution of caps.
Yasin Yilmaz, one of the campaign participants, told Anadolu that the response from fans who came to the matches was positive, reiterating that the cut watermelon symbolizes Palestine and the colors of its flag.
“The aim of the hat distribution campaign is to raise awareness of the ‘genocide’ of which the Palestinians are victims,” he explained.
*Translated from Arabic by Malèk Jomni
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