Indonesia has cited its long-standing political and diplomatic principles for its decision.
“We are aware of the Israeli Gymnastics Federation’s plan to sue Cas. We anticipate the lawsuit and will meet it respectfully, according to the rules and regulations of Cas and Indonesia,” said Minister of Youth and Sports Erick Thohir.
The decision came from Indonesia’s first president, Sukarno, who refused to recognize Israel as a country.
This attitude has defined Indonesia’s diplomatic stance for decades.
During the 1962 Asian Games, Indonesia similarly banned Israeli athletes, leading to their exclusion from the 1964 Tokyo Olympics by the International Olympic Committee.
Although that ruling was overturned, Indonesia boycotted the Games.
In March 2023, Indonesia was stripped of the right to host the Under-20 World Cup after the governor of Bali, where the draw was to take place, refused to host the Israeli team.
Six months later, Israel launched its offensive in response to the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, which killed 1,200 people and took 251 hostages into Gaza.
Since then, more than 67,000 people have been killed by Israel’s offensive in Gaza, according to the Hamas-led Health Ministry. The figures are considered reliable by the United Nations and other international bodies.
According to the UN, more than nine in ten residential buildings have been damaged or destroyed.
Last month, the UN Commission of Inquiry formally declared that Israel committed genocide against Palestinians in Gaza – although Israel rejected this.
On Monday, twenty living Israeli hostages and hundreds of Palestinian prisoners were reunited with their families as part of a ceasefire.
Shenar said Indonesia’s decision to deny visas to Israeli athletes was “sad timing” given the previous day’s events.
She added that “sports and politics should never interfere with each other,” pointing the finger at FIG as the IGF had raised the issue with them more than a year ago.
“We were hoping for a diplomatic solution, much sooner than a legal one,” she added.
“She [FIG] sent us a letter saying that everything is under control, and that the authorities there have given an official letter that there will be no problem.
“There is no doubt who we believe is responsible for this mess: FIG, part of the International Olympic Committee.
“They must follow all the rules and not ignore the Olympic Charter.”
In September, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called for Israel’s exclusion from international sports competitions over its actions in Gaza.
There have also been widespread calls for the country’s teams to be suspended from football competitions by Europe’s football governing body, UEFA.
This year’s Vuelta a España cycling race, in which the Israel-Premier Tech team took part, was seriously disrupted by pro-Palestinian demonstrators.
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