By Kayhan Life Staff
The disciplinary committee of Mes Rafsanjan Women’s Futsal Club has summoned one of the team’s players, Mahsa Kamali, after she showed the public a t-shirt she was wearing under her team jersey with the words “Stop War” printed on it — an apparent reference to the war waged against Ukraine by Russia.
Kamali, who scored the winning goal during the league’s quarter-final match, pulled up her team jersey at the end of the game to reveal the anti-war message printed on her t-shirt. Kamali is also a member of the Iranian Women’s Futsal National Team.
Two days after the match, Mes Rafsanjan Women’s Futsal Club published a statement on its official website, saying its disciplinary committee had summoned Kamali and that her actions were “emotional and personal” and in no way reflected the club’s policies.
The statement explained that Mes Rafsanjan Women’s Futsal Club’s policies and rules were not aligned with any “political movement.”
Iran considers domestic and international sports competitions as politically sensitive events. The Islamic Republic has prevented Iranian athletes from competing against Israeli opponents in many sports disciplines in the past four decades.
Mes Rafsanjan Women’s Futsal Club argued that the disciplinary committee had to deal decisively with anyone who broke the club’s rules and regulations.
Mahsa Kamali is one of the many athletes worldwide who have called for an end to hostilities ever since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24.
Most managers of sports clubs in Kerman idolize the late Lieutenant General Ghasem Soleimani, former commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps Qods Force (IRGC-QF), who was killed in a U.S. drone attack on the Baghdad International Airport on Jan. 3, 2020. General Soleimani was born in 1957 in Ghanat-e Malek, a village in Javaran Rural District, in Kerman Province. He is the province’s beloved son.
The clubs’ charters and cultures reflect IRGC’s values and principles, especially those upheld by the Defenders of the Holy Shrine — military personnel fighting in Iraq and Syria in defense and protection of Shia holy shrines.
