Police arrest Palestinian coach whose team posed with photo of terrorist

Palestinian soccer team Hilal Al Quds posed with a photo of Palestinian terrorist Mesbah Abu Sabih two days after he murdered two Israelis and wounded six others.

Israel’s police on Sunday arrested a Palestinian soccer coach who, along with his team, paid tribute to a terrorist who murdered two Israelis in Jerusalem the previous week.

Maher Abu Sanina, 55, of Jerusalem, coaches the Palestinian soccer team Hilal Al Quds. The team posed on Tuesday with the photo of Palestinian terrorist Mesbah Abu Sabih two days after he murdered two Israelis and wounded six others in a shooting spree before being killed by police.

The team held a banner with the photo that read “The Hilal al-Quds soccer club mourns the loss of the lion of al-Aqsa [Jerusalem], the martyr and hero Mesbah Abu Sabih.”

The team also honored Abu Sabih with a moment of silence, Israel’s Ynet reported.

Abu Sanina is charged with inciting terrorism.

A spokesman for the team, Tamer Obaidat, told Ynet that the banner was brought in by fans of the team who were “outraged” at Abu Sabih’s death.

The photo came to the attention of FIFA, the international governing body of football, which said it will punish the team for publicly supporting terrorism.

Fatah, the ruling party of headed by Palestinian Authority (PA) head Mahmoud Abbas, also paid tribute to Abu Sbeih, declaring him a martyr immediately after the terror attack.

In related news, Israeli security forces detained five Palestinians overnight Monday for involvement in terrorism. Israeli forces also confiscated thousands of shekels which are believed to have been earmarked for funding terror activities.

In Shechem (Nablus), Israeli forces sealed an apartment and storage space used for preparing bombs.

By: World Israel News Staff