Washington - "Jerusalem" dot com - Saeed Erekat - The American newspaper "Los Angeles Times" published, today, Thursday, a report entitled " The Palestinian issue takes center stage in the World Cup ."

According to the report, “As the Moroccan team gathered to take pictures, some players celebrated that moment by waving the country’s flag. However, there was another flag that the team carried front and center: the flag of Palestine, which was ubiquitous in the stands and the football field here in the CUP. the world's first in the Middle East.

The report notes that in that tournament, which is surrounded by difficult questions about what expression is permitted, and whether politics has a place in those sporting events, the Qatari authorities prevented fans and players alike from wearing symbols of homosexuality, or raising banners condemning the Iranian government, " While the Palestinian issue occupied the center stage on the scene of events.

The report indicates that in one of the matches, a Tunisian fan ran onto the stadium with a Palestinian flag behind him. After their team beat Belgium early in the tournament, Moroccan fans broke into a song of support for the Palestinians. And when Israeli forces killed five Palestinians late last month, Arabs chanted in the stands: "With our lives and blood we sacrifice for you Palestine."

And ESPN correspondent Mark Ogden published a tweet in which he wrote: "All the North African and Middle Eastern teams have made sure that the Palestine issue is prominent in every match."

The report points out that having this support was the sudden strong showing of the Arab teams in the World Cup. Although Saudi Arabia and Tunisia both exited, their respective victories over major powers Argentina and France galvanized a rare wave of regional solidarity.

Meanwhile, "when the Atlas Lions - as the Moroccan team is known - entered history as the first Arab team to qualify for the quarter-finals of the World Cup, celebrations broke out across the region and in expatriate communities around the world." He is a nurse from Jordan working in Qatar and attended the Morocco match against Canada: "The victory of any Arab team is a victory for all Arabs... We are like the fingers of one fist," while Amina Hazaa, a Jordanian teacher working in Qatar said: "Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, All of these support Palestine... We feel we have to support each other. If any Arab country wins, it will be a victory for Palestine." Mohammed Qazi, a Qatari who was walking with a friend along Doha's waterfront, said the Arab people are sending a message to the world: "Don't forget Palestine. Don't ignore the Palestinian cause."