It seems that the rising tide of anti-Israel sentiment in Europe has reached Switzerland as well. As The Times of Israel reported, at the European Championship of under-23 fencers in Estonia the second-placed Swiss men’s team turned their backs during the Israeli national anthem played for the gold-medallist Israelis.
The ‘protest’ was condemned by Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, who described the conduct of the Swiss as “disrespectful behaviour.”
“Respect!” wrote foreign minister Sa’ar on X of the Israeli team’s gold medal.
Congratulations to the Italian team for winning the bronze … shame on the Swiss team for their disrespectful behaviour. You don’t know how to lose and behaved in a manner which is an embarrassment to you and the country you’re supposed to represent.
The Swiss Fencing Federation said it would probe the incident, after the Israeli foreign ministry contacted the Swiss authorities. In a statement, the federation said that the protest action was not raised before the contest and that it will look into the matter with team members when they return to the country. The president of the federation expressed “regret” over the behaviour of its team.
