The Palestinian-led boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement has targeted the Giro d’Italia, accusing the race’s Israel start of being an attempt at “sport-washing”.
In November, more than 120 organisations issued an appeal to Giro organisers RCS Sport not to hold the start of the race in Israel because of what they see as the country’s “grave and escalating violations of international law and Palestinians’ human rights.”
BDS is now running a #ShameOnGiro campaign.
The relevant page on its website states: “Israel’s multi-million dollar bribe was enough to enlist Giro in its propaganda campaign. As a result, Giro is whitewashing, or sport-washing, Israel’s ongoing war crimes.”
The movement is asking people to “spoil the party and give Giro a reality check” and provides images and videos that can be shared via social media.
Speaking to the Associated Press in November, RCS race director Mauro Vegni said: “The reality is that we want it to be a sports event and stay away from any political discussion.
He added: “I hope that it is treated as a sports event. And I hope it’s treated as a sports event by the Palestinians also.”
37 thoughts on “Activists target Giro d’Italia over support for Israel”
He added: “I hope that it is
He added: “I hope that it is treated as a sports event. And I hope it’s treated as a sports event by the Palestinians also.”
Thats kind of the issue in a nutshell, if a Palestinian gets anywhere near the giro there’ll more than like be shot dead by the Israeli defence force.
Housecathst wrote:
I do not approve or defend Israel’s actions in Gaza, but FYI about a quarter of israeli citizens are palestinian arabs. You can be sure there were a fair number of palestinians in the crowd at the first Giro stage.
rookybiker wrote:
I think you will find they are Israeli arabs, Palestinians live in Gaza and the West bank.
ktache wrote:
I’m sorry, but that makes no sense. A significant proportion of Israel’s population are russians, but they live, work and breed in Israel. Palestinian is a ‘nation’. I lived and worked in Israel for 2 years, with a number of palestinians, who didn’t live in Gaza or West Bank. There are also Jews who live in Gaza and the West bank (controversially). This doesn’t make them Palestinian Jews….
madcarew wrote:
One that has somehow contrived to live there for ‘thousands of years’ without leaving a single archeological or cultural trace. I suppose that is their most remarkable ‘achievement’. Well, that and killing innocent people and making us all take our belts and boots off to go through security at airports.
But hey, don’t take my word for it. Here are some questions about ‘Palestine’ for you.
When was it founded and by whom?
What were its borders?
What was its capital?
What were its major cities?
What constituted the basis of its economy?
What was its form of government?
Can you name at least one Palestinian leader before Arafat?
Was Palestine ever recognized by a country whose existence, at that time or now, leaves no room for interpretation?
What was the language of the country of Palestine ?
What was the prevalent religion of the country of Palestine ?
What was the name of its currency? Choose any date in history and tell what was the approximate exchange rate of the Palestinian monetary unit against the US dollar, German mark, GB pound, Japanese yen, or Chinese yuan on that date.
Haha! I’m delighted that those two years were a complete waste of time. There are no Jews in Gaza, because any Jew who wanders in there will be slaughtered by the murderous filth who live there.
Yes, ‘controversially’ because there is no such political entity as ‘the West Bank’. The area to which you refer is Judea-Samaria which has been Jewish for five thousand years, except when Jordan illegally occupied it.
If ‘Palestinians’ (sic) were Jews, you wouldn’t give a shit about them.
Legs_Eleven_Worcester wrote:
One that has somehow contrived to live there for ‘thousands of years’ without leaving a single archeological or cultural trace. I suppose that is their most remarkable ‘achievement’. Well, that and killing innocent people and making us all take our belts and boots off to go through security at airports.
But hey, don’t take my word for it. Here are some questions about ‘Palestine’ for you.
When was it founded and by whom?
What were its borders?
What was its capital?
What were its major cities?
What constituted the basis of its economy?
What was its form of government?
Can you name at least one Palestinian leader before Arafat?
Was Palestine ever recognized by a country whose existence, at that time or now, leaves no room for interpretation?
What was the language of the country of Palestine ?
What was the prevalent religion of the country of Palestine ?
What was the name of its currency? Choose any date in history and tell what was the approximate exchange rate of the Palestinian monetary unit against the US dollar, German mark, GB pound, Japanese yen, or Chinese yuan on that date.
Haha! I’m delighted that those two years were a complete waste of time. There are no Jews in Gaza, because any Jew who wanders in there will be slaughtered by the murderous filth who live there.
Yes, ‘controversially’ because there is no such political entity as ‘the West Bank’. The area to which you refer is Judea-Samaria which has been Jewish for five thousand years, except when Jordan illegally occupied it.
If ‘Palestinians’ (sic) were Jews, you wouldn’t give a shit about them. — madcarew
”murderous filth” lovely! Very balanced of you! Not sure it even worth engaging in a conversation with somebody who would write that.
remind me, when was Israel created ? 1948 wasn’t it ?
Housecathst wrote:
The modern state of Israel was reconstituted on ancient Jewish land in 1948.
And unlike probably anyone here, I was in Israel in 2005 when they abandoned the Gaza strip. Agricultural equipment, synagogues, homes. Israel begged them not to damage them, but to use them to build themselves a state.
What did they do? They burned them, looted them, defecated on the roof of synagogues. And they used what money they had (a lot of which comes from idiots like you in Europe) to dig tunnels to kidnap children and hold them to ransom, to buy rockets and missiles. They are vermin.
Ah, why do I bother? You are entirely ignorant – as indeed, am I. But like most people, you think that the ability to write your opinions on a website, is synonomous with those opinions having any validity.
Legs_Eleven_Worcester wrote:
One that has somehow contrived to live there for ‘thousands of years’ without leaving a single archeological or cultural trace (I would contend that Tel Gamma, Tell el-Farah and Nahal Besor represent Palestinian archeological remnants). I suppose that is their most remarkable ‘achievement’. Well, that and killing innocent people and making us all take our belts and boots off to go through security at airports.
But hey, don’t take my word for it. Here are some questions about ‘Palestine’ for you.
When was it founded and by whom?
In its currently claimed form, around 100AD, by the Romans. Although the state of Palistin existed in what is now north-west Syria around 1100BC. To be fair, it was never a country but instead always a ‘people’ and their ‘region’.
What were its borders?
Basically, in its currently claimed (Roman) form, it covered modern day Lebanon and Israel, plus a bit of Syria.
What was its capital?
Because it wasn’t a country, it had regional administrative capitals for most of its history rather than a main captial. It was largely answerable to Rome and Constantinople at various times. The administrative capital are amongst the major cities shown below. Its capital on its last day of existance in 1948 though, was Jerusalem.
What were its major cities?
Aelia Capitolina (now Jerusalem), Caesarea Maritima (now in modern day Israel, and renamed Caesarea Palestinae), Gaza, Ashkelon, Hebron etc.
What constituted the basis of its economy?
Trade routes, and war – always good for business.
What was its form of government?
It was a Roman province until around 400AD. Prior to this is was ruled, for a period, variously by Five Lords of the Philistines and others. After the Romans, it became a Byzantine province – the names ‘Palestinae’ or ‘Filisitna’ were incorporated in various forms of the region’s names throughout – and from the late 1800s until the end of World War One it was an Ottoman district, called Palestine. Until 1948 it became Mandatory Palestine.
Can you name at least one Palestinian leader before Arafat?
It had a series of governors – Roman, Byzantium, Ottoman. Can you name at least one Israeli leader before 1948? David (of David and Goliath fame) was Palestinian – although he’s more commonly known to us now as from Judae because we read from translations of the Hebrew Bible. I can give you Achish of Gath though!
Was Palestine ever recognized by a country whose existence, at that time or now, leaves no room for interpretation?
Please read everything I’ve written above, and do your own research. As far back as the Romans, they negotiated with Palestine.
What was the language of the country of Palestine?
Again, it wasn’t a country – it has always been a ‘people’ and a ‘region’. ‘Countries’ are a relatively modern invention, and something Europe and the west imposed on the Arab World. But, Aramaic was spoken, as was Latin (from the Romans), but mostly Arabic – even the Ottomans spoke Arabic. Hebrew only became increasingly prevalent at the beginning of the 20th century.
What was the prevalent religion of the country of Palestine?
Depending on the period of time and on various scales; Jewish, Christian, and from the 6th century largely Muslim.
What was the name of its currency? Choose any date in history and tell what was the approximate exchange rate of the Palestinian monetary unit against the US dollar, German mark, GB pound, Japanese yen, or Chinese yuan on that date.
It varied through time – for a long period it was the Ottoman lira. In 1927 the British introduced the Palestinian Pound – it was equivalent to one British Pound – precisely.
— madcarew
What do I win?
simonmb wrote:
Well, you certainly win a prize for effort, and I daresay that the Jew-haters in the audience, why .. there are already seven likes, so that sort of demonstrates what I was going to reply. But then, you could have posted a copy and paste from the Ken Livingstone election manifesto, and the readers here would have been clapping their hands like a seal on dope.
But you also must win a prize for the most gall and the greatest brass neck, in hoping that your bluster and shit would pass muster.
To take but some examples, Tel Gamma, Tell el-Farah and Nahal Besor. Tel Gamma was in fact a Canaanite and Philstine settlement – an Iron Age city quoted in tales of the conquest by the Pharoah Tutmose III. His reign ended in about 1450 BCE if my memory serves me correctly – a full two thousand one hundred years before the flight of Mohammed, termed the Hejira and considered the ‘birth’ of Islam. As for Tell el-Farah, that town is called Tirzah and was a Hebrew settlement in northern Samaria. The same Samaria that was in fact known as the Kingdom of Israel. Tirzah was its capital.
I don’t know of Nahal Besor and can’t be arsed googling.
When was it founded and by whom?
In its currently claimed form, around 100AD, by the Romans. Although the state of Palistin existed in what is now north-west Syria around 1100BC. To be fair, it was never a country but instead always a ‘people’ and their ‘region’.
Indeed it was ‘never a country’. The word ‘Palestine’ in fact is a variation of what the Romans termed Israel after they rendered it Judenrein. The Romans did not ‘found’ it. They simply renamed it when they’d slaughtered or expelled the rightful owners – the Jews. But top marks – claiming that a place stolen by the Romans is in fact an ancient ‘palestinian’ (sic) city. That takes guts, man!
What were its borders?
Basically, in its currently claimed (Roman) form, it covered modern day Lebanon and Israel, plus a bit of Syria.
In other words, ‘Palestine’ did not exist. Which is what I said.
What was its form of government?
It was a Roman province until around 400AD.
This one really impresses me – claim ‘it was a roman province’, and your audience is sitting there nodding its collective head and muttering, ‘see ? Told you it was a fackin’ country!’ But as you quite obliquely acknowledge – it wasn’t. Again, this confirms what I wrote, whilst appearing to contradict me, and portray some nonexistent erudition. You’re doing well ..
David (of David and Goliath fame) was Palestinian
This one gave my wife and me much hilarity. Wasn’t Abbas – you know, the ‘president’ on year twelve of his four-year mandate – trying to claim that Jesus was ‘a Palestinian’ (sic) too ? LOL ..
And then we get to the Palestine Pound. Really? A coinage imposed by an illegal occupation? Meanwhile, Israelites were using coinage (remnants of which still exist) since around 6th or 7th century BCE.
I didn’t treat every one of your hilarious claims, which of course will allow you and your fellow pro-‘Palestinian’ (sic) wingnuts to continue to howl at the moon and claim some sort of ‘victory’.
So, basically – there was no currency of ‘Palestine’ (by which of course, you know I mean ‘used independently by the people still claiming to have lived there ‘since time immemorial”‘). There have been no KIngs, no rulers before Arafat, no history, and now in 2018, no archeological relics that have been independently verified as belonging to this ‘palestinian [sic] people’. As is to be expected, since there is no such nation, people, race, ethnicity or culture as ‘Palestinian’ (sic). They are ethnic Jordanians, Egyptians, Syrians and Lebanese who flooded into Israel at the end of the second Alya. Their fraud and land theft is not going to be allowed to continue.
simonmb wrote:
You win this weeks award for succinct eloquence.
I presented all that to Legs a couple of weeks ago, and challenged him to answer the same things for the Jewish ‘State’ pre 1948. He’s been pretty quiet on that, because, really, it’s pretty much a parallel to the palestinians. Never their own state (except for about 50 years after the maccabean rebellion), just a nation of mixed peoples. Prior to 1948 the primary language(s) spoken by the vast majority of the world’s Jewish population for at least 300 years was German, Russian, and Yiddish. If that’s a measure of statehood (as he proposes above) then Jews are German and / or Russian. I think that may grate a little.
Legs_Eleven_Worcester wrote:
One that has somehow contrived to live there for ‘thousands of years’ without leaving a single archeological or cultural trace. I suppose that is their most remarkable ‘achievement’. Well, that and killing innocent people and making us all take our belts and boots off to go through security at airports.
But hey, don’t take my word for it. Here are some questions about ‘Palestine’ for you.
When was it founded and by whom?
What were its borders?
What was its capital?
What were its major cities?
What constituted the basis of its economy?
What was its form of government?
Can you name at least one Palestinian leader before Arafat?
Was Palestine ever recognized by a country whose existence, at that time or now, leaves no room for interpretation?
What was the language of the country of Palestine ?
What was the prevalent religion of the country of Palestine ?
What was the name of its currency? Choose any date in history and tell what was the approximate exchange rate of the Palestinian monetary unit against the US dollar, German mark, GB pound, Japanese yen, or Chinese yuan on that date.
Haha! I’m delighted that those two years were a complete waste of time. There are no Jews in Gaza, because any Jew who wanders in there will be slaughtered by the murderous filth who live there.
Yes, ‘controversially’ because there is no such political entity as ‘the West Bank’. The area to which you refer is Judea-Samaria which has been Jewish for five thousand years, except when Jordan illegally occupied it.
If ‘Palestinians’ (sic) were Jews, you wouldn’t give a shit about them. — madcarew
I’ve already answered all of those questions for you in depth in a previous thread. You can’t or havent’ answered those questions for any ‘jewish state’ 1000 or 3000 years ago either. It doesn’t mean it didn’t exist. You assume I’m pro palestinian. I’m not. I’m simply anti bigotry.
madcarew wrote:
I’m still waiting to hear about these Jews you believe live in Gaza…
Legs_Eleven_Worcester wrote:
Yeah, that’s what I thought.
Legs_Eleven_Worcester wrote:
News flash for you Bro. I don’t live my life on line.
You know what your wife said to you the other day, about how you go on line to argue with retards? Well, the last 3 messages have been you replying to your. From where I’m standing it looks like you’re arguing with yourself, so I’m going to concur with your wife’s assessment.
I was in Israel in ’93 – ’94. At that time there were Jewish settlements in Gaza, although they were withdrawn in 2005. So, the question still stands (as I was clearly referencing when I was in Israel). Were those people Palestinian Jews? It’s rhetorical by the way.
I’m not anti semitic, or anti zionist. I’m anti bigot. You, by your vehement denial of the very existence of a people (academic genocide?) are a bigot. I have very little interest in engaging with you further. I refute absolutely that you have a doctorate in this matter so you are simply a fantasist. I am going to take your wife’s sage advice and decline to engage with bigotted fantasist retards.
https://cyclingtips.com/2018
https://cyclingtips.com/2018/05/opinion-why-its-impossible-to-separate-sport-and-politics-at-giro-start-in-israel/
I won’t be watching this year
I won’t be watching this year – a disgusting decision to start the race there.
“I hope that it is treated as
“I hope that it is treated as a sports event.”
If it was just going to be treated as a sporting event, it wouldn’t be worth a fraction of the reported £10m RCS have pocketed to provide distraction cover for the hosts would it? Talk about trying to have your cake and eat it.
Eg3ftp1 wrote:
Not a fraction, never! Although according to this, the 2014 Grand Départ in Yorkshire cost about a half (paid to ASO):
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/report-yorkshire-tour-de-france-grand-depart-to-cost-lb10m/
But no! No way was *that* a bribe, sports-washing, etc. etc. — those things really only apply to Israel. We do know who lives in Israel don’t we? Ken Livingstone & pals certainly do.
Eg3ftp1 wrote:
Tourism Israel are doing some pretty clever integrated marketing with this. The sceneary and historical sites on the TV look both fascinating and stunning. As a result, my girlfriend has started researching a trip for later this year.
It’s the biggest sporting event Israel have ever hosted and the crowds are fanatstic. The $12 million fee to host seems like an absolute bargain!
Kadinkski wrote:
Do go to Israel if you get the chance. Nothing about what you see when you’re there reminds of the troubles. Just get out there and experience the great people, food, music, weather and biblicle stories.
stealfwayne wrote:
Nicely out of site and out of mind, eh. Just don’t try going to the Gaza strip.
spen wrote:
But .. why? Some dolt on this site thinks that Jews live there! I’m sure you’ll be very safe! Take a tour in ‘the West Bank’, too. Those peace-loving ‘Palestinians’ (sic) will be glad to welcome you. Just make sure you’re not Jewish (or British, or American, or female, or gay, or ..)
http://www.jewishpress.com/news/politics/two-machsom-watch-women-who-strayed-into-arab-village-robbed-stoned/2017/11/03/
stealfwayne wrote:
Yeah, its been a real eye-opener to be honest – you kind of fall into the trap of thinking its all as portrayed in the bad news on TV. But the Giro and subsequent holiday research we’ve done makes it look like a really vibrant place, I love history and she loves beaches 🙂 Acre looked incredible on the Giro – a 4,000 year old city!
Beats me how it was
Beats me how it was considered a good idea to continue with stages in Israel any could try where stone throwing youths are being shot dead by that country’s army almost every day. Just what is unacceptable nowadays?
spen wrote:
Brilliant. A citizen of the country which enslaved a quarter of the population of the planet, which slaughtered any of the colonials who dared to protest, and who still denies its responsibility, dares to moan because Jews were led into the ovens whilst you and your parents and grandparents sat and cackled, decide they want their own country.
Priceless.
Legs_Eleven_Worcester wrote:
Where to start with this offensive shit. You need a slap.
Beats me how it was
Beats me how it was considered a good idea to continue with stages in Israel any could try where stone throwing youths are being shot dead by that country’s army almost every day. Just what is unacceptable nowadays?
Sorry for duplicate, tablet playing up a bit
“There are also Jews who live
“There are also Jews who live in Gaza and the West bank (controversially). This doesn’t make them Palestinian Jews….”
and this is why Israel is in breach of a number of UN resolutions the settlers who have made there homes in Gaza and the West Bank consider it to be Israel and Israeli defences force supports them.
Housecathst wrote:
Because it is Israel.
Go and learn the difference between Chapter VI and Chapter VII resolutions, there’s a good lad.
Housecathst wrote:
F**k me, the ignorance here is crippling…
https://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/18/world/middleeast/tearfully-but-forcefully-israel-removes-gaza-settlers.html
Legs_Eleven_Worcester wrote:
you do realise that over 13 years old!
Housecathst wrote:
Ah, so there’s an arbitrary time before which your point somehow stands? What is that time, do tell? And who decides it? You? Obviously. Or so you believe.
Of course, it’s ‘thirteen years old’, because Israel left Gaza in 2005. They didn’t leave it in 2015. Or 2012. Or even in 2010. They left it in 2005, and that’s why the bloody article is from 2005.
As the old saying goes, if brains were explosives, you’d be unable to blow your head off.
Have been watching the entire
Have been watching the entire Israel stages here in France on Equipe – I’ve never seen anything so boring – compared with Italian or French landscapes, Israel on this Giro seems nothing but desert, Tech parks and golf courses. I suppose they were so scared of any hostile demonstrations that they’ve kept it out in areas that they can secure. I’d have said a tourism and public relations disaster.
Got briefly interesting at 80
Got briefly interesting at 80.5km from the line.
Excellent idea to start the
Excellent idea to start the Giro in Israel.
This is a sport and politics are irrelevant.
Coming from Belfast, I see the good this type of brave decision brings.
Tel Aviv looks like a good holiday destination for the future.
Just a note in the old sport
Just a note in the old sport and politics dont mix argument. There’s a big overlapping thing in the Venn diagram called Culture of which sport and politics do overlap considerably; and indeed is the point. You might be able to artificically put a spanner between sport and politics but when you add culture and, indeed, business, that argument is insipid. Cycling is culture and business is politics and culture is business and business is culture and sport is politics etc.
I don’t prefess to know enough about Israel to add anything useful here but trying to redact comment on that argument is just blinkered non-logic.
simonmb – that was quite an
simonmb – that was quite an interesting read!