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By Mandy Taheri
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Palestinian Olympic athletes received a warm welcome in Paris on Thursday as they arrived ahead of the Opening Ceremony, while the team's head called out the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for "double standards" over Israel's inclusion in the Games.
Met with Palestinian flags, chants of "Free Palestine," and nearly a hundred people, the Palestinian team paraded through Charles de Gaulle airport.
Prior to their arrival, the team issued a letter to IOC President Thomas Bach alleging that Israel breached the Olympic Truce by bombing Gaza. It stated that "Palestinian athletes, particularly those in Gaza, are denied safe passage and have suffered significantly due to ongoing conflict," according to AFP.
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"Approximately 400 Palestinian athletes have been killed, and the destruction of sports facilities exacerbates the plight of athletes who are already under severe restrictions," the letter said.
The nine-month long war in Gaza followed Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people and resulted in about 250 hostages, of which around 120 remain held.
Israel has since engaged in numerous air and ground offensives, razing much of Gaza while displacing more than 2.1 million Palestinians and killing upward of 39,000, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, per The Associated Press (AP).
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Newsweek reached out to the Palestine Olympic Committee and the Israel Olympic Committee via email on Thursday. Newsweek sent an email to Hala Abou Hassira, the Palestinian ambassador to France, for comment on Thursday.
On Tuesday, the IOC rejected their request, with Bach saying that the Olympics are "not a competition between countries or governments" but "among athletes."
Jibril Rajoub, the Palestinian Olympic Committee's head called out the IOC for having "double standards" over its decision, saying upon his arrival in Paris on Thursday that: "This confirms that there are international institutions that insist on applying double standards and not adhering to the Olympic Charter, laws and regulations, or morals," the AFP reported.
Rajoub's "double standard" comments refer to the IOC banning Russia from participating in the Paris Games for violating the Olympic Charter after its 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Belarus is also banned for its support and allyship in the invasion.
In an email statement to Newsweek, an IOC spokesperson said "the situation is not comparable with the Russian/Ukrainian situation. This conflict or the too many other armed conflicts in our world cannot be compared with the Russian war against Ukraine.
"The suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee [ROC] is based on the unilateral decision taken by the ROC on 5 October 2023 to annex, and claim as its members, a number of regional sports organisations within the territory of the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine. This constitutes a breach of the Olympic Charter because it violates the territorial integrity of the NOC of Ukraine, as recognised by the IOC in accordance with the Olympic Charter. Therefore, the two situations are not comparable.
"In contrast to the present case, the relevant NOCs did not extend their area of jurisdiction over that of another NOC or outside their own area of jurisdiction," adding, "it is beyond our remit to react to any conflict or war situation between countries. This is the pure realm of politics."
Last Friday, the United Nation's top court, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), declared Israel's continued presence in the Palestinian territories "illegal" and urged the country to immediately cease all new settlements, evacuate settlers, and issue reparations, in an advisory opinion. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded immediately with a statement rejecting the court's findings.
The opinion came two months after the International Criminal Court requested arrest warrants on Netanyahu, his defense minister Yoav Gallant, and three top Hamas leaders for "war crimes and crimes against humanity."
The Palestinian Olympic team—made up of eight athletes—will compete in the Olympics for the eighth time, with the first appearance in Atlanta's 1996 Games. There, runner Majed Abu Maraheel was the first Palestinian athlete to compete in the Games. He died from kidney failure this June, in a Gazan refugee camp with medical shortages and power outages from the ongoing war, The Washington Post reported.
The athletes representing the Palestinian territories will compete in boxing, judo, swimming, shooting, track and field, and taekwondo.
The Olympic Truce is a tradition rooted in ancient Greek Olympic principles to "allow safe participation," according to the IOC.
The Olympic Charter, adopted by the IOC, outlines the fundamental principles and rules governing the Olympics, including various disciplinary procedures and sanctions that IOC can take.
Update 7/26/24, 1:15 p.m. ET: This article has been updated to include the IOC's comment.
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