Iraq dismisses Jerusalem as venue for soccer World-Cup match against Palestine
The last soccer international played in the Palestinian territories was in October 2019 and Palestine have since staged their "home" fixtures at neutral venues in Qatar, Jordan, Kuwait and Malaysia.
Iraq want their World Cup qualifier against Palestine next month moved from the Jordanian capital of Amman, having also knocked back a Palestinian proposal to stage the match just outside Jerusalem.
The last soccer international played in the Palestinian territories was in October 2019 and Palestine have since staged their "home" fixtures at neutral venues in Qatar, Jordan, Kuwait and Malaysia.
Palestine are due to host Iraq in a Group B match in the third round of Asian qualifying on March 25 and, after the proposal to play the match in the Palestinian territories was turned down, FIFA proposed Amman as the neutral venue.
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The Iraqi Football Association (IFA) said in a statement on Thursday that it had written to soccer's world governing body asking for the match to be moved to another city as playing in Amman would breach FIFA's own rules on neutral venues.
"This decision raises serious questions about the integrity and fairness of the competition, given the highly competitive nature in Group B," the IFA statement read.
"Iraq, Jordan and Palestine are direct competitors in the group and the gap between Iraq and Jordan in the standings is currently very close."
Iraq are in second place in the group with 11 points, leading Jordan in third by two points and trailing leaders South Korea by three points. The top two teams in the group progress directly to the 2026 World Cup finals in North America.
The Palestine Football Association (PFA) released a statement on Thursday regretting Iraq's decision not to allow the match to go ahead at Faisal Al-Husseini International Stadium in Al-Ram, Jerusalem.
The PFA said FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) had inspected the stadium and agreed the match could be played there, but only with the agreement of the Iraqis.
"We were surprised to learn that our colleagues in the Iraqi Football Association had unilaterally decided to decline playing in Palestine and directly communicated this to the AFC and FIFA without consulting the PFA," the statement said.
"Despite this decision, we reaffirm our unwavering commitment to reclaiming our right to host matches on our home soil -- a right we have fought tirelessly to secure and uphold over the years."
The IFA said "despite our keenness to hold the match in beloved Palestine, and to stand with Palestinian sports at this time", the body had decided to refuse because of the lack of VAR technology in the stadium.
Reuters has contacted FIFA and the AFC for comment.
Palestine are bottom of Group B with three points after six matches. Neither Palestine nor Jordan have previously qualified for the World Cup finals, while Iraq lost all three games on their one appearance in Mexico in 1986.
