The top-flight football league is throwing its support for civilians caught in the crosshairs of violence.
(Reuters) – The Premier League is standing by those in the crosshairs of violence in Israel and its surrounding territories.
Arguably the world’s most well-known and prestigious football league, the Premier League has announced that its players, managers, and match officials will wear black armbands for the next round of matches as a mark of respect for those affected by the Israel-Hamas conflict. The English top-flight league made the announcement on Friday as tensions continued to escalate in the region.
"We hope for peace, and our heartfelt sympathies are with the victims, their families, and the communities impacted," the league said in its announcements.
The armbands will be worn in matches played from Saturday to Monday, with the league also announcing that they will make a donation to the British Red Cross, who are involved in humanitarian missions in Israel and other conflict-ridden regions.
Israel has been carrying out a bombing campaign in Gaza and has vowed to wipe out the Hamas Islamist group that rules it. This is in response to Hamas gunmen bursting through the barrier fence surrounding the enclave on October 7 and rampaging through Israeli towns and kibbutzes, killing 1,400 people, mainly civilians.
The violence has only escalated from there, with Israel mainly going on the offensive in the days after.