The Palestinian national soccer club championship was called off on Wednesday after Israel denied travel permits to Gaza players who had hoped to face off with their opponents in the occupied West Bank.
Israel refused to let players from Gaza’s Khadamat Rafah club travel several dozen kilometers through its territory to play Nablus’s FC Balata in the central West Bank.
Israeli officials have not given a public explanation of the reasons. Some media reports have quoted Israeli security sources saying team members were believed to have links to terrorism.
