4:06 p.m.: The president of the French Football Federation (FFF), Philippe Diallo, and the general director of Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), Victoriano Melero, were invited this Friday at 10 a.m. to the Hôtel de Beauvau, where they will be received by Othman Nasrou, Secretary of State for Citizenship, Le Figaro learned from his office. They will thus have the opportunity to “explain themselves”, as requested by Bruno Retailleau.
14h23: On his X account, the deputy for Essonne Antoine Léaument also reacted to the banner deployed yesterday evening. “This tifo of Parisian supporters has its place in a football stadium. Those who criticize it are also those who support Netanyahu’s genocidal war”, he wrote on the social network, concluding “well done to the supporters who make France shine in the camp of peace.
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2:18 p.m.: At the beginning of the afternoon, on her X account, Rima Hassan posted a message on her personal account. A new provocation from the MEP. She posts a photo of the anti-Israel banner, displayed yesterday at the Parc des Princes. A photo accompanied by the following message: “Thank you!”.
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11:50 a.m.: UEFA will not initiate any proceedings against Paris SG for the pro-Palestinian message deployed Wednesday evening by its supporters before the Champions League match against Atletico Madrid, the body indicated to AFP on Thursday. “There will be no disciplinary case since the banner displayed cannot be considered provocative or insulting in this specific case,” said his spokesperson.
Article 16.4 of the European body’s disciplinary regulations allows for the sanctioning of “any provocative message unsuitable for a sporting event”, in particular “any provocative message of a political, ideological, religious or insulting nature”.
It therefore does not ban all political proclamations from football stadiums, but only those deemed “provocative” or offensive, a criterion for example applied to homophobic banners and chants, as well as to the monkey cries of Hungarian supporters during the Euro- 2020.
08h41: The Parisian Ultras collective deployed last night at the Parc des Princes, during the Champions League match between PSG and Atlético Madrid, a huge banner with a Palestinian flag, a masked Palestinian fighter who could be a masked Hamas terrorist and Disappeared Israel covered by a Keffiyeh.
Very quickly, the president of the Representative Council of Jewish Institutions of France (Crif) reacted on X. “Scandalous banner this evening at the Parc des Princes!
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. The authors of this banner must be punished! Intolerable! “, denounced Yonathan Arfi.
For the record, UEFA regulations prohibit any political messages in sports venues.
Our colleagues from Le Figaro are wondering this morning:
“If the leaders of PSG, whose owner is Qatar, claim that they were not aware, how can we believe them? The controversy is total. There are many questions. It is up to those concerned to take responsibility and explain themselves. “
This major operation comes as the French team is due to host Israel on November 14 and the conflict in the Middle East has lasted for more than a year now. The fate of Palestinian civilians is of great concern.”
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