TORONTO - Protesters targeted FIFA with a high-visibility demonstration on the Gardiner Expressway Friday, just hours before Canada’s World Cup opener against Bosnia and Herzegovina. Activists unfurled a massive red banner reading "Kick Israel out of FIFA" from an embankment overlooking one of the city's busiest commuter routes.
Demonstrators, identifying as Jews for a Free Palestine, accused global soccer’s governing body of complicity in human rights violations. Spokesperson Faisal Ibrahim stated that FIFA normalizes occupation by broadcasting matches played in disputed territories, including the West Bank and Syrian Golan Heights.
The protest also demanded the release of Palestinian doctor Hussam Abu Safiya, detained by Israeli forces in Gaza in late 2024. While UN experts have urged FIFA and UEFA to suspend Israel amid genocide assessments, FIFA maintained in March it would take no action against Israeli clubs, citing the unresolved legal status of the West Bank under international law.