On May 6, 2015, HaMoked filed an
urgent objection to the banned departure abroad of a young Palestinian, a member of the Palestinian football team, scheduled to play in an important game in Malesia on June 16, 2015.
On May 12, 2015, the military
rejected the objection, claiming that during his interrogation in the past, the footballer admitted that he ran “an errand on behalf of a man from Hamas HQ abroad” – an action which jeopardized the “security of the area”. The military added that the footballer could file a new request to go abroad in nine months from the submission date of his last objection.
However, that same day, when he reached Allenby Bridge border crossing with the rest of the Palestinian football team en route to Tunisia, the authorities decided to to let him leave. The decision was made just days before the planned vote on the proposed suspention of the Israel Football Association at the upcoming congress of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA).
This seems to suggest that Israel is ready to contend with what it maintains are severe security threats when its isolation on the international arena is at stake.
