Lamine Yamal did nothing wrong
Israel’s defence minister accused the Barcelona FC star of “inciting hatred” for displaying the Palestinian flag, drawing criticism for conflating peaceful advocacy with antisemitism.
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After Barcelona won its 29th La Liga title last week following a 2-0 victory against its perennial rival Real Madrid, tens of thousands of delighted fans lined the streets of Barcelona to greet their heroes during the parade around the Spanish city.
During the celebrations, viral footage showed the team’s teenage superstar, Lamine Yamal, raise a Palestinian flag to cheers from the crowd in attendance.
For those who follow Lamal on social media, his latest gesture comes as no surprise. The 18-year-old is a practising Muslim who has regularly used his platform to express his personal beliefs. This extends beyond his Palestinian activism: in March, Lamal spoke out agains the “ignorant and racist” anti-Muslim chants that took place during a friendly match between Spain and Egypt in Barcelona.
Lamal is also a resident of Barcelona, which has served as a significant hub of Palestinian activism in Spain and the Western world. It has hosted regular protests, and was even a departure point for several aid flotillas that sailed for Gaza in an attempt to break the Israeli-imposed blockade on the besieged strip. Spain’s prime minister Pedro Sanchez has also emerged as one of Europe’s most vocal critics of Israel, especially with regard to the ongoing ethnic cleansing of Gaza. In 2025, he called on Israel to be banned from international sports so long as its “barbarism” in Gaza continues.
Nevertheless, Lamal’s gesture in support of Palestine drew a visceral response from Israeli officials. On Thursday, Israeli defence minister Israel Katz took to X to accuse the 18-year-old of inciting hatred against Israel and the Jewish people, and demand that the club to distance itself from Yamal’s actions.
“Lamine Yamal chose to incite hatred against Israel while our soldiers are fighting the terrorist organization Hamas, an organization that massacred, raped, burned, and murdered Jewish children, women, and the elderly on October 7th,” wrote Katz, who failed to elaborate on how Yamal incited hatred beyond waving the Palestinian flag.
“Anyone who supports this kind of message must ask themselves: Do they consider this humanitarian? Is this moral? As Minister of Defence of the State of Israel, I will not remain silent in the face of incitement against Israel and the Jewish people,” Katz continued. “I hope that a large and respected club like FC Barcelona will distance itself from these statements and make it unequivocally clear that there is no place for incitement or support of terrorism.”
Spain’s PM responded shortly thereafter, insisting that “those who consider waving the flag of a State to be “inciting hatred” have either lost their judgment or been blinded by their own ignominy.
“Lamine has only expressed the solidarity with Palestine felt by millions of Spaniards. Another reason to be proud of him,” Sanchez continued.
It is worth noting that this isn’t the first time that Katz has made controversial statements on social media. The Israeli defence minister, who oversees the IDF and its open fronts in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria, has previously announced plans to permanently occupy parts of Gaza and even suggested building settlements there, though was forced to walk back the latter statement. HE entered into a public clash with French officials after France banned Israeli companies from participating in a defense exhibition in Paris. Katz even threatened to jail Jibril Rajoub, the president of the Palestinian Football Association (PFA), for his ongoing efforts to ban Israel from international football.
“Jibril Rajoub, a terrorist in a suit who openly supported Hamas’s crimes, is working around the clock to get Israel removed from the international soccer association,” Katz wrote in a tweet, which included a picture of Rajoub in prison attire. “We will work to thwart his plans, and if he doesn’t stop—we will imprison him in the Muqata’a [presidential compound in Ramallah], where he will be left to play Stanga by himself between the walls.”
Katz’s most recent inflammatory statements directed at Yamal are particularly troubling because they deliberately conflate expressions of solidarity with Palestinians — including the display of the Palestinian flag — with antisemitism and incitement against Israel and Jews. This undermines the distinction between criticism of Israeli state policies and antisemitism and stigmatizes peaceful advocacy for Palestinian rights while weaponizing accusations of antisemitism to silence dissent.
Meanwhile, Katz’s statements also coincided with Jerusalem Day, where Israeli nationalists marched through the ancient city to mark the anniversary of its capture and annexation while chanting “death to Arabs” and “Gaza is a graveyard.” Not only did Katz’s not condemn this clear incitement of violence, one of his colleagues, national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, was in attendance and unfurled an Israeli flag in from of the al-Aqsa mosque, one of the holiest sites in Islam.
Nevertheless, Yamal’s solidarity has since resonated around the world, especially where it matters most. A mural of the teenager waving the flag has been painted amidst the rumble in Gaza.
“I worked on this painting after the player Lamine Yamal raised the flag of Palestine at a huge celebration that the whole world saw,” Palestinian artist Ubay al-Qurshali told Reuters. “We want to thank the player Lamine Yamal for what he did. He risked his career, he risked his playing and he risked his future, (but) he didn’t care and he supported the Palestinian cause.”
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