Lamine Yamal waves Palestine flag; Israel issues stern warning: "Are you supporting a terrorist organization"? Flick stop-loss selling? "I don't like it"

*This content was translated by AI.

Lamine Yamal (19, Barcelona) sparked controversy by waving the Palestine flag during a championship celebration. The Israeli government has condemned the act as inciting hatred and is strongly criticizing it.

Spain's "Marca" reported on the 14th (local time) that "Yamal's Palestine flag celebration has triggered fierce backlash from Israel and escalated into a national issue."

On the 11th, during the La Liga championship parade, Yamal asked a fan to hand him a Palestine flag. He then posted a video of himself waving the flag on his social media account, which has over 42 million followers, causing a major stir.

The Israeli government responded immediately. Israel's Minister of National Defense, Israel Katz, wrote on his social media in Spanish: "While the Israeli army fought the terrorist organization Hamas, which massacred and raped Jews on October 7 last year, Yamal chose to incite and stir up hatred against Israel."

He continued, "Is this action truly humane and moral?" and warned, "We will never remain silent about incitement against Israel and the Jewish people."

Furthermore, Minister Katz pressured Barcelona to clearly state its position by drawing a line on this matter and not supporting terrorism.

Hansi Flick, Barcelona's manager, stepped in to de-escalate the Dokdo situation. At a pre-match press conference for the Alaves game on the 12th, he stated, "I did not like Yamal's action of waving the Palestine flag and held a separate meeting with him." However, he added, "Yamal is an 18-year-old adult who makes his own judgments and decisions," cautioning against excessive interpretation.

Meanwhile, Yamal played a key role in Barcelona's La Liga title win this season. He recorded 16 goals and 11 assists in the league alone, totaling 24 goals in official matches. However, he suffered a hamstring injury during last month's match against Celta Vigo, leading to a season-ending diagnosis and raising concerns that he might miss the 2026 North American World Cup. Fortunately, he has recently shown signs of recovery and resumed training, so there is expected to be no issue with his inclusion in Spain's final national team roster.

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*This content was translated by AI.