Former Germany National Team Player ?zil, Currently with T?rkiye
Close Ties with President Erdo?an Spark 'General Election Candidacy' Rumors
"Wants Israel's Annihilation... Accused of Anti-Semitism" Criticism
Former German national football team player Mesut ?zil (35) posted a social media (SNS) message that erased Israel from a map and labeled Palestine, drawing criticism from German society. On the 1st (local time), the British Daily Mail reported, "?zil posted an image on Instagram the day before showing a map with Israel crossed out in red 'X' and Palestine written below."
German media collectively condemned this as a message wishing for the 'extermination' of Israel. The term extermination (Vernichtung) was used by the Nazis in 1942 when deciding on the organized mass murder known as the 'Final Solution' to the Jewish question. In politics, there were even calls to revoke the medal the government awarded him when Germany won the 2014 Brazil World Cup. In May, ?zil faced criticism for anti-Semitism after posting an image of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu behind bars with the caption "war criminal, child murderer, mass murderer."
Born as the son of a migrant worker from T?rkiye, ?zil was called a genius midfielder and played 92 matches for the national team, but fell out of favor in German society. In 2018, a photo of ?zil with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an was revealed amid turmoil, and Germany shockingly failed to advance from the group stage of the Russia World Cup. When the blame for the poor performance fell on him, ?zil retired from the national team, saying, "If we win, I'm German; if we lose, I'm an immigrant."
Afterwards, he moved to a club in the Turkish league, and his close relationship with President Erdo?an became known, including inviting Erdo?an to his wedding in 2019, sparking rumors of a run for the Turkish parliament. On the 6th of last month, he watched the UEFA Euro 2024 quarterfinal match between T?rkiye and the Netherlands at Berlin's Olympiastadion together with President Erdo?an. T?rkiye cut all trade with Israel in May amid ongoing airstrikes in the Gaza Strip, and Israel declared T?rkiye as an 'axis of evil,' worsening relations.
Last year, regarding the Israel-Hamas war, ?zil expressed support for Palestine on SNS by posting, "Stop the war. Praying for humanity and peace," along with the Palestinian flag.
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