A Turkish court releases a player, pending trial, after he displayed the words “100 days” on his bandage. 07/10′ celebrating a goal.
A Turkish court has released pending trial an Israeli footballer who was arrested after posting a message apparently marking 100 days since Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7.
Sagiv Jehezkel, 28, sported a bandage on his wrist reading “100 days. 07/10″ next to the Star of David after scoring a goal for Antalyaspor against Trabzonspor in a match on Sunday.
Turkish authorities summoned the Antalyaspor player for questioning after the incident and accused him of “openly inciting the public to hatred and hostility”, according to the Turkish Justice Minister , Yilmaz Tunc.
In an article on X, Tunc said Jehezkel had engaged in “an ugly gesture in support of the Israeli massacre in Gaza.”
“We will continue to support the oppressed Palestinians,” he added, denouncing what he called the ongoing “genocide” in Gaza.
NTV television reported that a private plane was sent from Israel on Monday to pick up Jehezkel and his family so they could return home.
During his testimony to police, Jehezkel said he “did not intend to provoke anyone.”
“I am not a supporter of war,” the private news agency DHA was quoted as saying.
Jehezkel, capped eight times by the Israeli national team, celebrated his goal against Trabsonspor by displaying the message on the bandage, believed to be a reference to Israel’s 100 days of war in Gaza and the captives held by Hamas in the coastal enclave.
On October 7, the Palestinian group launched an unprecedented attack on Israel, killing around 1,140 people and kidnapping 250 others, according to Israeli authorities.
Since then, a brutal Israeli military campaign has killed at least 24,100 Palestinians and injured 60,834 others, while thousands more remain trapped under the rubble.
For its part, Antalyaspor announced that it had suspended Jehezkel, accusing him of having “acted against the values of our country”.
The Turkish Football Federation (TFF) added: “We condemn the completely unacceptable behavior of footballer Sagiv Jehezkel during the match between Antalyaspor and Trabzonspor played today (…) and find Antalyaspor’s decision to exclude the player on his team.”
Jehezkel’s brief detention also sparked outrage in Israel. “Shame on you, Turkish government,” former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennet wrote on X.
Since the start of Israel’s war on Gaza, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a longtime supporter of the Palestinian cause, has repeatedly called Israel a “terrorist state” and Hamas a “group of liberators.”
In a separate incident, Istanbul’s Basaksehir team announced it was opening a disciplinary investigation against another Israeli player, Eden Karzev, for reposting a message on social media about the hostages, saying: “Bring back them at home now.”
