ISTANBUL

Despite the more than 67,000 people Israel has killed in its Gaza genocide since Oct. 7, 2023, Israeli basketball teams were allowed to observe a moment of silence at a Wednesday EuroLeague match for the Israelis who died on that day two years ago.

Hapoel Tel Aviv and Maccabi Tel Aviv observed the moment of silence for the fewer than 1,200 Israelis who died in a cross-border Hamas raid that day, though no permission has been given a moment to honor the nearly 60 times more Gazans killed by Israel in the two years since.

Following this granting of a moment of silence to Israel by European basketball's premier club competition, all eyes will be on whether such a moment of silence will be permitted in other matches of the week commemorating the second anniversary of the genocide in Gaza.

Two Turkish teams, Anadolu Efes and Fenerbahce Beko, are also competing in the EuroLeague, which also features the two Israeli teams.  

While banning Russia, European basketball remains silent on Israel

International basketball authority FIBA and the EuroLeague have ignored Israel's crimes against humanity and drawn accusations of hypocrisy for their stance since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war in 2022.

While the EuroLeague suspended Russian clubs from taking part in its competitions since the Ukraine war began, Israeli clubs have continued to compete in the event over the past two years, even as Israel has been committing genocide in Gaza.

Since October 2023, Israeli attacks have killed over 67,000 Palestinians in the enclave, most of them women and children.

The relentless bombardment has left Gaza largely uninhabitable, leading to widespread starvation and disease.