Gary Lineker insists he WON’T stop speaking out on Gaza

The former England captain, 63, has previously landed himself in hot water for his political interventions which critics see as flagrant breaches of the BBC’s impartiality rules.

In January he said he recieved threats after he retweeted and later deleted a post on social media calling for Israel to be banned from international sporting events, including football – leading to him being hailed by Hamas‘ mouthpiece news agency.

But speaking to Zeteo, he said: ‘There is a lot of heavy lobbying on people to be quiet so I understand why most people refrain but I’m getting on a bit now, I’m fairly secure and I can’t be silent about what’s happening.

‘I think it’s just so, so utterly awful and now they’re talking about: “Oh, it looks like it’s happening, going into Rafah”, where they’ve sent everybody down there.

‘So I don’t see how you can be – it’s not anti-Semitic to say that what Israel is doing is wrong. I just can’t see how everybody doesn’t see it that way now.

‘But whatever the cause, whatever started it – we all know that the history of this area of the world goes way before October 7th. But it’s truly dreadful what’s happening.

‘And I cry on a regular basis when I see certain images on social media.’

Commenters flocked to praise the Match of the Day star, as he gained praise for 

Baroness Jenny Jones of Moulsecoomb – the Green Party former Deputy Mayor for London – said: ‘I woke up tired, after another week of pushing back on stupid legislation from the Govt, but Gary Lineker speaking out is a bright point for today.’

Louise Mathews added: ‘My biggest celeb crush as a teen was Gary Lineker and I applaud wee teen me. Not only is he gorgeous but he is brave, fair and uses his platform for the good of human rights.’

And a third – Sinead Kehoe – said: ‘It’s so rare to hear the truth from public figures that when you hear it, it’s so refreshing. Gary Lineker is a class act

The Zeteo news website has been a prominant critic of Israel’s involvement with Gaza, with more than two thirds of the videos they have produced being focused on the conflict.

The first work pulished on their YouTube channel is called ‘Debunked! Top Seven Lies About Gaza’, while their ‘people’ include outspoken fellow Guardian columnist Owen Jones and climate activist Greta Thunberg. 

Lineker, who was temporarily taken off air by the BBC after being caught up in an impartiality row last March, said that many people feared speaking out on Gaza because they get ‘accused of being a supporter of Hamas’.

It was reported early this year that Lineker took down a reposted tweet from a pro-Palestinian account calling for Israel to be banned from sporting tournaments because of an apparent misunderstanding.

The Daily Telegraph said the former England footballer was not fully aware of what he was sharing. According to a source, he believed it was a news item about Israel being banned, rather than a call for this to happen. 

The Quds News Network, a Palestinian youth news agency affiliated to Hamas, published a story on its website trumpeting Lineker’s reposting of the proposed ban with the headline, ‘Renowned English broadcaster calls for Israel to be banned from international [football]’. 

Politicians told the BBC to ‘enforce its own guidelines’ and take action against the ‘out of control’ Match of the Day host. 

In December, a Tory MP reported Lineker to the BBC after the Match of the Day host launched a series of taunts against Tory politicians. The BBC’s chairman, Samir Shah, told MPs the online attacks appeared to have breached the corporation’s social media guidelines. 

Lineker continued: ‘It’s the worst thing I’ve seen in my lifetime. I’ve seen so many images of children that, you know –

Gary Lineker says he 'cries on a regular basis' over Gaza as he wades into Middle East politics https://t.co/OTqUjPjwBe

— GB News (@GBNEWS) May 12, 2024

‘I’ve go no skin in this game. I’m not Muslim, I’m not Jewish, I’m not Israeli, I’m not Palestinian.

‘So I see it, I think, purely from the outside as from a neutral perspective. And I can’t think of anything that I’ve seen worse in my lifetime. The constant images of children losing their lives day in, day out.

‘Now, obviously, we all know, you know, October 7th happened and you know, the unmasking. But the minute you raise your voice against what they’re now doing there, you get accused of being a supporter of Hamas, or, you know, this kind of stuff.’

The row comes as the Biden administration said that Israel’s use of U.S.-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law – but wartime conditions prevented US officials from determining that for certain in specific airstrikes.

The finding of ‘reasonable’ evidence to conclude that the U.S. ally had breached international law in its conduct of the war in Gaza was released in a summary of a report being delivered to Congress on Friday. It is the strongest statement that the Biden administration has made yet.

But the caveat that the U.S. was unable immediately to link specific U.S. weapons to individual strikes by Israeli forces in Gaza could give the administration leeway in any future decision on whether to restrict provisions of offensive weapons to Israel. 

Israel launched its offensive after an Oct. 7 assault into Israel, led by Hamas, killed about 1,200 people. 

Two-thirds of the Palestinians killed since then have been women and children, according to local health officials. U.S. and U.N. officials say Israeli restrictions on food shipments since Oct. 7 have brought on full-fledged famine in northern Gaza. 

Human rights groups long have accused Israeli security forces of committing abuses against Palestinians and have accused Israeli leaders of failing to hold those responsible to account. 

In January, in a case brought by South Africa, the top U.N. court ordered Israel to do all it could to prevent death, destruction and any acts of genocide in Gaza, but the panel stopped short of ordering an end to the military offensive. 

Israel says it is following all U.S. and international law, that it investigates allegations of abuse by its security forces and that its campaign in Gaza is proportional to the existential threat it says is posed by Hamas.