Israel Football Teams to Play Fixtures in Hungary
- 23 Jan 2024 8:40 AM
- Hungary Matters
Israel had asked Hungary to allow its national football teams to play some of its official matches in Hungary, as was the case last year, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said after a meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council.
Israel’s European Championship playoff against Iceland will be held in Hungary, as well as the match of the Israeli under-21 team against Poland, and the next official match of the women’s national team, he told journalists.
Also, Hungary supports Maccabi Haifa playing the next European Conference League match in Hungary.
The minister also said that Hungary was a safe country, and anyone who referred to a rise in anti-Semitism in Hungary was “clearly lying”.
Israel's Success ‘In World’s Interest’
It is in the interest of the world that Israel’s counter-terrorist operations are successful, Péter Szijjártó, said in Brussels, arguing that this would help to ensure that a similar terrorist attack never happened “anywhere ever again”.
After a meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council, the foreign minister told a press conference that Hungary’s standpoint was “crystal clear”: what triggered the conflict in the Middle East must never be forgotten.
“We find Israel’s objective to destroy Hamas not only understandable but also a legitimate interest of the world at large… People who use others, especially women and children, as human shields after mounting a terrorist attack should feel shame,” he said, calling for a swift return to the path set out by the Abraham Accords, namely the normalisation of relations between Israel and the Arab world.
Hungary, he said, called for the “immediate and unconditional release of the hostages who are still in captivity”, noting that a Hungarian citizen was still being held captive.
Hungary is in constant contact with Qatar and another important mediating country, he said, adding he would not name that country due to the sensitivity of hostage negotiations.
Szijjártó also emphasised Hungary’s position that it found The Hague proceedings against Israel to be “nonsense”.
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