Former Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki said that the current World Cup has damaged the reputation of “Trump’s America” , while praising the previous edition of the global event organized by Qatar.
The current edition of the FIFA World Cup is generating widespread controversy, due to the United States barring entry to Somali referee Omar Abdulkadir Artan, as well as sports officials from Palestine, Iraq and Iran. Fans from Iran and Haiti were also banned, and restrictions were imposed on fans from Senegal and Ivory Coast.
Marzouki said in a special statement “What I hope is that the people – despite their short memory – will remember how an Arab country called Qatar managed the same global event, and how it and the Qatari people welcomed the world with warmth, non-discrimination and good organization.”
He added: “These matches, as much as they raised our heads across Qatar, also struck at the reputation of ‘Trump’s America,’ and highlighted the vast difference between an arrogant past and a promising future for the new peoples.”
FIFA is facing widespread criticism and accusations of double standards after banning countries like Russia from participating because of the invasion of Ukraine, while allowing the Israeli occupation state to participate despite its perpetration of genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Marzouki commented on this by saying: “Unfortunately, the policy of the top official has once again revealed the chronic disease that is striking the joints of the international system as controlled by America. That is, double standards.”
He added: “For people who care so much about their beautiful narrative of systems that are mobilized for great values, they have not yet realized that they have lost all credibility, and are laying out the red carpet for the alternative (Chinese) narrative. They have shot themselves in the foot.”
Marzouki concluded by saying: “Fortunately, a growing part of the Western peoples also condemns this hypocrisy, as happened in the support for our people in Gaza.”
