Algeria’s football federation announced on Wednesday that it was suspending all football competitions and matches “in solidarity with the Palestinian people” during the Israel-Gaza conflict.
The governing body had previously agreed to host the Palestine national team’s forthcoming football matches following a request from the Palestinian FA.
Algeria international Riyad Mahrez, who won the Premier League title five times before joining Saudi Arabian club Al-Ahli from Manchester City in July, shared a photo on social media of himself holding the Palestinian flag on the pitch after his country’s 5-1 home friendly win over Cape Verde last Thursday.
Teammates Said Benrahma, of West Ham United, and Ahmed Touba, of Istanbul Basaksehir, joined Mahrez to hold the flag in a picture he captioned: “We want peace.”
Mahrez and Algeria shared a 1-1 draw in Abu Dhabi on Monday with Egypt, whose captain, Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah, called on “world leaders to come together to prevent further slaughter of innocent souls” on Tuesday. (BBC)
