Tunisian tennis star Ons Jabeur enrages Israel tennis body with Gaza support

Two-time Wimbledon finalist Ons Jabeur enraged Israel's official tennis body by posting in solidarity with Palestine amid Israel's devastating bombing of Gaza.

Sports

2 min read

The New Arab Staff

19 October, 2023

Tunisian tennis star Ons Jabeur has been expressing support for Palestine on social media [Getty]

Tunisian tennis star Ons Jabeur has expressed her solidarity with Palestine and shared posts condemning Israel’s ongoing bombardment in Gaza, enraging Israel's tennis association.

Jabeur has been sharing posts using Instagram's Stories feature, on Wednesday sharing a post by the International Committee of the Red Cross condemning the strike on Gaza's Al-Ahli Arab Hospital that killed almost 500 people.

Last week, Jabeur posted a lengthy statement to her Instagram story, calling what Palestinians have endured since the Nakba of 1948 "indescribable".

On the ongoing war between Israel and Palestinian group Hamas, Jabeur said she was against violence being unleashed on civilians.

"What innocent civilians are going through is indescribable; no matter what their religion is, or what their origin is," Jabeur said.

"Violence will never bring peace; I cannot stand with violence, but I also cannot stand with people having their lands taken."

"Peace is what everyone needs and deserves. Stop the violence and #FreePalestine," she added.

#إسرائيل تشكو التونسية #أنس_جابر بسبب دعمها لفلسطين. pic.twitter.com/CPZ9Dkf5g9
— الخليج الجديد (@thenewkhalij) October 19, 2023

Jabeur’s statement angered Israel's official tennis body, with the president of the Israeli Tennis Association (ITA), Avi Peretz, accusing her of supporting a "murderous terrorist organisation".

The ITA said it had made a complaint to the Women’s Tennis Association against the Tunisian tennis star.

🧵It's now day 13 of Israel's relentless bombing of the Gaza Strip

👉Israeli strikes continue to rain on Gaza, where the death toll has reached at least 3,478 people, according to the besieged enclave's Health Ministry

🔴 Live coverage: https://t.co/KaPYFF4fNi pic.twitter.com/8uZSoI3AcA
— The New Arab (@The_NewArab) October 19, 2023

Jabeur also shared on Wednesday an Instagram post by French footballer Eric Cantona that read: "Defending the human rights of Palestinians does not mean you are pro-Hamas."