Israeli forces kill two Gaza football players as Palestinian sports community mourns

Israeli forces killed two more football players in the besieged Gaza Strip as they were waiting for emergency humanitarian aid.

According to the official Palestinian Wafa news agency, the players have been identified as Moath Alaa al-Hawajiri who played for al-Nuseirat Club and Nasrallah al-Muqat’ah who played for Deir al-Balah.

The Palestinian sports community has highlighted the heavy impact the war has had on athletes and sports personalities in the enclave.

The Palestinian Football Association (PFA) issued a statement calling the killing of the players a "painful loss," highlighting that the number of sports people killed since the start of the war has risen to 325.

The figure includes sports players, coaches, administrators, referees and members of club boards.

A statement from PFA said that al-Muqat’ah is widely considered to be a prominent player in Gaza and has played for several clubs.

It added that al-Hawajiri was known for his contributions to the Al-Nuseirat Services team and his "distinguished presence" on the field.

"With their passing, Palestinian sports loses two figures who have long been an integral part of its human and sporting fabric," the statement continued.

The killing of the footballers comes just days after Israeli forces also killed Suleiman al-Obeid as he was waiting to get aid for his children.

The much-loved 41-year-old football star was born in Gaza but also played for the Markaz Shabab al-Am’ari in the occupied West Bank.

He earned praise when he scored against Yemen in the 2010 West Asian Football Federation championship. He is survived by his wife and five children.

Over 288 sports facilities have also been destroyed by Israeli bombardment in Gaza and the occupied West Bank. Around 268 of them were in Gaza.

Israeli forces have killed over 1,000 Palestinian aid-seekers since the end of May and since the Israel and US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) started operations.

"As of July 21, we have recorded 1,054 people killed in Gaza while trying to get food; 766 of them were killed in the vicinity of GHF sites and 288 near UN and other humanitarian organisations’ aid convoys," UN human rights office spokesman Thameen Al-Kheetan said last month.

The war on Gaza, determined to be a genocide by leading rights groups including Amnesty International, has killed over 61,000 Palestinians.