Football fans across Germany received a unique symbol of solidarity with Gaza (Palestine) this week: watermelon-patterned hats distributed ahead of key UEFA EURO 2024 group matches. The eye-catching hat made appearances at the Spain-Italy match in Gelsenkirchen on June 20th. Meanwhile, fans also spotted similar headwear at the Türkiye-Portugal match in Dortmund on June 22nd, and again at the Scotland-Hungary match in Stuttgart on Sunday. Notably, the watermelon motif cleverly represents the black, red, and green colors of the Palestinian flag.
“We want our voices to be heard here against the (Israeli) oppression of our Palestinian brothers,” Mehmet Şimşek, one of the volunteer event’s sponsors, told Anadolu Agency in Gelsenkirchen earlier this week. Şimşek emphasized the need for Muslims to engage with the issue, raise public awareness, and “do something” to protest. Furthermore, he stated, “It is impossible to turn a blind eye to this genocide (against Palestinians).” Indeed, those who are committing this genocide (in Gaza) have faced genocide in the past. Yet now, (Israel) is doing it.
According to Şimşek, German police prevented volunteers from distributing some of the solidarity hats to fans in Gelsenkirchen. “About 50,000 hats were produced. We wanted to distribute these hat s here, but the police did not allow it.”
50,000 Watermelon Logo Hats
Undeterred, the same civic organization distributed the hats to fans at BVB Stadion Dortmund before the Türkiye-Portugal match on Saturday. Turkish businesspeople in Germany produced the 50,000 watermelon-logo hats to draw attention to the ongoing conflict. Volunteers repeated the effort at Stuttgart Arena on Sunday before the Scotland-Hungary match, providing the hats to both Scottish and Hungarian football fans to raise awareness.
Gaza
Eight months into the Israeli conflict, much of Gaza lies in ruins. The blockade has cut off food, clean water, and medicine. Local health authorities report over 37,500 Palestinians killed and nearly 86,000 injured, many of them women and children.
Source: aa.com
