Israel has killed at least 47 Palestinian athletes since the onset of the current war on the besieged Gaza Strip, the Palestinian Olympic Committee says.
In a statement, cited by Palestine’s official WAFA news agency on Friday, the committee said that the “Israeli destruction machine” had killed at least 47 athletes from various team and individual sports plus 17 technicians and administrators since the beginning of the war.
It added that Israeli forces had also arrested five athletes and other sports-related employees and inflicted many physical injuries on Palestinian athletes.
Those killed include Yasmine Sharaf, a six-year-old karate player, who had dreamed of representing Palestine in international competitions, the committee added.
According to the statement, Israel’s ceaseless bombardment of the Palestinian sliver has struck numerous sports facilities, including the United Nations Development Program “UNDP” stadium, Beit Hanoon Stadium, three equestrian clubs, a baseball field, and several martial arts centers.
Israel waged the war on Gaza on October 7 after the Palestinian Hamas resistance group carried out the surprise Operation Al-Aqsa Storm against the occupying entity in response to the Israeli regime’s atrocities against Palestinians.
More than 17,000 Palestinians have been killed, most of them women and children, and at least 46,000 others injured since the onset of the current US-backed war on Gaza.
