Rabat – Supporters of Raja Casablanca expressed their support for the Palestinian cause during their team’s game against the Palestinian team Hilal Al-Quds.
Rajawi fans waved Palestinian flags and held banners against normalization with Zionists. The game that ended with Raja’s victory (1-0) was held in Casablanca’s Mohammed V stadium, on Monday, September 23. The match was part of the round-of-32 of Mohammed VI Arab Champions Cup.
Before the start of the match Raja fans displayed a Tifo depicting “Handala,” a famous cartoon character portraying a 10-year-old refugee child. “Handala” was created by Palestinian cartoonist Naji al-Ali, one of the most famous cartoonists in the Arab world, known mostly for his criticism of Arab regimes and Israel.
Throughout the game, more than 50,000 supporters chanted songs in support of Palestine. The fans also shouted “Palestine, Palestine” and “Gaza, we will never let you down” for more than 90 minutes. The Palestinian’s team goalkeeper, Rami Hamada, started chanting with the crowds for some moments in the middle of the game.
“I would like to thank the Moroccan people for their welcoming. The atmosphere was amazing, I even chanted during the game,” Hamada said in a post-game interview.
His teammate Mohammed Sammar also expressed his gratitude towards Moroccan fans: “Many thanks to the fans who chanted for the glory of Palestine during the whole 90 minutes.”
الشعوب عصية على التطبيع مع الصهاينة القتلة… جمهور الرجاء البيضاوي أمس في مقابلة بين الرجاء وهلال القدس الفلسطيني.
Posted by Noureddine Lechhab on Tuesday, 24 September 2019
Impressed with the support shown by the Moroccan crowds, Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, promised that the Moroccan team and their fans will be hosted for free during their upcoming travel to the West Bank to play the second leg of the game, on October 3.
The solidarity expressed by Raja fans with the Palestinian cause is not the first time Moroccan people have declared their support for their Palestinian brothers. In June, 2019, thousands of Moroccans rallied in solidarity with Palestine. The crowds protested against the US proposed Middle-East Peace Plan, the so-called “Deal of the Century.”
The Moroccan government is also known for its support for the Palestinian cause. King Mohammed VI was one of the first world leaders to warn the US and the United Nations after US President Trump decided to move the US embassy in Israel to Jerusalem.
On September 15, during an emergency meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, Secretary of State to the Moroccan Foreign Minister, Mounia Boucetta, delivered a speech reiterating Morocco’s unwavering position on the Israel-Palestine conflict.
In her speech, the Moroccan official said that violations by the Israeli authorities “undermine the two-state solution and hinder international efforts to revive the peace process.”
The secretary of state also highlighted the special interest of King Mohammed VI, Chairman of the Al-Quds Committee, in promoting the Palestinian cause.
