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Saleem Al-Ashqar

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Saleem Al-Ashqar
Personal information
Full name Saleem Khader Al-Ashqar
Date of birth 1993 or 1994
Date of death (aged 32)
Place of death Al-Qarara, Gaza Strip, Palestine
Position Goalkeeper
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
Al Aqsa Club [ar]
Shabab Khan Younis [ar]
Al-Masdar Sports Club [ar]
Khadamat Khan Younis [ar]
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Saleem Khader Al-Ashqar (Arabic: سليم خضر الأشقر; 1993 or 1994 – 29 June 2026) was a Palestinian footballer who played as a goalkeeper for various clubs in the Gaza Strip. He was shot and killed by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) in the town of Al-Qarara in 2026.

Career

Al-Ashqar played as a goalkeeper from a young age and dreamed of representing the Palestine national team.[1] He played club football in the Gaza Strip for Al Aqsa Club [ar], Shabab Khan Younis [ar], Al-Masdar Sports Club [ar], and finally, Khadamat Khan Younis [ar],[1] though the Gaza war both interrupted his career[2] and resulted in severe damage to the club infrastructure of many clubs including Khadamat Khan Younis.[1]

According to Palestine Now, Al-Ashqar was well known for his "high morals and distinguished presence on the field, where he was loved by his colleagues and everyone who knew him", as well as his "good character and humility".[3]

"When club managements would sit with us to negotiate his contract, Saleem would tell them, ‘I don’t need money; I need to be a player who represents my homeland, my people, and the State of Palestine," recalled his uncle, Palestinian Football Association (PFA) referees committee member Farid Al-Ashqar.[1]

Personal life

Al-Ashqar was the only son in a family of six or seven sisters.[1][4] He married his wife on 29 January 2026; the pair were expecting his first child at the time of his death.[1][5] According to Al Jazeera, Al-Ashqar lived "a life dedicated to football and family."[1] A relative described him as "one of the finest young men in [their] neighbourhood".[5]

Death and reactions

On 29 June 2026, Al-Ashqar was shot and killed by soldiers from the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) while looking for cooking gas in Al-Qarara.[1] Al-Ashqar was struck in the abdomen but doctors were unable to stop his severe internal hemorrhaging due to the Gaza Strip healthcare collapse.[6][5] He died around two hours after arriving at the hospital.[6]

According to the Palestinian Football Association (PFA), Al-Ashqar was the 1,009th Palestinian sportsperson killed by Israeli forces since the start of the Gaza war, as well as the 567th Palestinian killed from the football sector alone.[1] His killing was condemned by the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP)[7][8] and the Communist Party of Swaziland, with the latter also condemning the "silence of the FIFA leadership".[9] His uncle Farid Al-Ashqar, who helped raise him, accused FIFA and international federations of hypocrisy for failing to address Israel's continued attacks on civilian sportspeople in Gaza.[1] Tributes were paid by Khadamat Khan Younis club president Abdulghani al-Sheikh,[1] Club Deportivo Palestino,[6][10][11] and the Turkish Minister of Youth and Sports, Osman Aşkın Bak, with the last using his to compare the 572 footballers at the World Cup with the 567 Palestinian footballers killed since October 2023.[11]

Some sources placed his killing in the context of the attention received by the ongoing 2026 FIFA World Cup;[11] there were various displays of solidarity with the Palestinian cause shown by different groups of fans at the tournament.[12][13] Fans from countries including Algeria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Jordan have demonstrated their support by waving Palestinian flags.[12]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Mansour, Mohammad (3 July 2026). "Gaza sports community pledges to continue legacy of killed goalkeeper". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 4 July 2026.
  2. ↑ Singh, Pragjyoti (2 July 2026). "Who Was Saleem Al-Ashqar? Palestinian Goalkeeper Dead at 32". Athlon Sports. Archived from the original on 3 July 2026. Retrieved 4 July 2026.
  3. ↑ "الحارس الأشقر... 5 أشهر من الزواج وحلم الأبوة ينتهي برصاصة". Palestine Now (in Arabic). 1 July 2026. Archived from the original on 5 July 2026. Retrieved 4 July 2026.
  4. ↑ "Israel kills Palestinian goalkeeper Saleem Al-Ashqar in Gaza - World - Sports". Ahram Online. Retrieved 25 July 2026.
  5. 1 2 3 "Palestinian footballer and soon-to-be father killed by Israeli forces in Gaza". The National. 2 July 2026. Archived from the original on 25 July 2026. Retrieved 25 July 2026.
  6. 1 2 3 Aboudari, Sofia (2 July 2026). "Israeli forces kill Palestinian goalkeeper Saleem Al-Ashqar in Gaza". The New Arab. Retrieved 4 July 2026.
  7. ↑ "ICJP condemns killing of Palestinian footballer by Israel". International Centre of Justice for Palestinians. 3 July 2026. Retrieved 3 July 2026.
  8. ↑ Hamed, Assiah (3 July 2026). "ICJP joins calls for FIFA action against Israel after killing of Gaza footballer". The New Arab. Archived from the original on 6 July 2026. Retrieved 4 July 2026.
  9. ↑ "Murder of Palestinian goalkeeper Saleem Al-Ashqar condemned by Communist Party of Swaziland". The Left Chapter. 3 July 2026. Archived from the original on 3 July 2026. Retrieved 4 July 2026.
  10. ↑ Club Deportivo Palestino [@CDPalestinoSADP] (1 July 2026). "El Club Deportivo Palestino lamenta profundamente el sensible fallecimiento de Saleem Al-Ashqar, arquero palestino de 32 años que defendía los colores del Khadamat Khan Younis y que perdió la vida a manos del ejército israelí. Nos destroza que hechos como este sigan ocurriendo. Exigimos justicia y paz para #TodoUnPueblo 🇵🇸" (Tweet) (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 July 2026 – via X (formerly Twitter).
  11. 1 2 3 "Palestinian goalkeeper killed by Israel in Gaza as Fifa faces fresh calls to act". Middle East Eye. Archived from the original on 25 July 2026. Retrieved 25 July 2026.
  12. 1 2 "Israeli forces kill Palestinian goalkeeper Saleem Al-Ashqar in Gaza". TRT World. 1 July 2026. Archived from the original on 3 July 2026. Retrieved 4 July 2026.
  13. ↑ Escandón, Pascual (2 July 2026). "Conmoción en el futbol: muere en tiroteo el arquero palestino Saleem Al-Ashqar; recién casado y esperando a su primer hijo". Vanguardia [es] (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 4 July 2026. Retrieved 4 July 2026.
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