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Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah has been praised for his bold criticism of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA)’s tribute to the late Suleiman Al-Obeid, known as the “Palestinian Pele”.
UEFA paid its tribute to the 41-year-old Palestianian soccer legend in a statement on X, hailing him as “a talent who gave hope to countless children, even in the darkest of times”.
Salah noted that the tribute was hollow and failed to acknowledge the circumstances that led to Suleiman Al-Obeid’s death, an apparent case of selectively picking what to say despite the magnitude of situation in Palestine and Israel's attacks.
The Egyptian star wanted UEFA to share with the world more than just a tribute that celebrates the deceased's legacy but one which is transparent and detailed and pointed its attention to the details that were missing.
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He took to social media with his bold take, confronting UEFA with the realities in Palestine and asking the body to also tell the world how the former national team member met his death, where and why writing:
Can you tell us how he died, where, and why?
His response saw some netizens praise him using his voice to shed the light on the devastating results of the conflict, the thousands of lives lost.
Netizens reacts as Mohamed Salah confronts UEFA
Others praised him for redirecting UEFA’s attention to the real issue: The killing of civilians waiting for humanitarian aid.
Some questioned the lack of action by the European football body on Israeli, contrasting the same with the swift action taken by UEFA in previous situations of conflict with most sanctions against Russian clubs and national teams.
Aged 33, the Egyptian international has been a vocal advocate for humanitarian aid to be allowed into Gaza and international intervention to end the conflict.
Using his socials and global voice, Salah who has more than 19.3 million followers on X, with many more on other social media platforms continues to shed the light on the conflict that has dragged on for nearly two years.
Liverpool forward and Egyptian international Mohamed Salah
How 'Palestinian Pele' met his death
Al-Obeid was killed by an Israeli attack on civilians waiting for humanitarian aid in the southern Gaza Strip.
The attack which happened on Wednesday left many casualties, adding to the growing number of unarmed civilians killed by Israel in the conflict that has dragged on for years.
Humanitarian aid agencies have also not been spared in Israel’s brutal assault on Palestine.
According to the United Nations, over 1,000 people have been killed in Israeli attacks near aid distribution sites after the launch a United States- and Israel-backed aid distribution system named GHF in May.