FA chief against lighting up Wembley Arch in Israel colours asked his wedding guests to donate to Palestine charities
THE UNDER-FIRE FA chief involved in deciding not to light up the Wembley Arch in Israel’s colours had asked his wedding guests to donate to medical charities as he praised the “Palestinian struggle”.
Deji Davies, the FA’s inclusivity chief, asked his pals to cough up cash for a charity operating in Palestine.
The revelation comes a day after The Sun revealed Mr Davies had urged people to boycott the under-21 Euros in 2013 because they were held in Israel.
The same year, he set up a Just Giving page to mark his wedding to wide Sian Davin.
The page reads: “We both share a passion for supporting the Palestinian struggle for freedom from occupation.
“Medical Aid for Palestinians provides life saving medical aid for Palestinians living in the occupied territories.”
The site shows that £90 was raised for the charity Medical Aid for Palestinians.
Critics said the revelation raises fresh questions over whether Mr Davies should have played a role in the decision over lighting football’s famous arch.
Lord Eric Pickles, former chairman of the Tory Party, said: “Inclusion means everybody that includes Jewish people.
“The guy is entitled to his private views but what he has done is force his private views on the FA.
“I was shocked when they didn’t light it up. I thought it was illogical.”
Mr Davies has been deleting his old tweets after his previous call for a boycott of Israel resurfaced.
In a statement posted on Friday, he said he has “learned more about the complexities of what is clearly an incredibly difficult, nuanced subject” since 2013.
Mr Davies said: “When my wife and I were married, in lieu of gifts we asked for donations to be made to two registered medical charities – Marie Curie, which supports people medically at the end of their live and Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP), which provides life saving medical aid for Palestinians in need.
“As I have already made clear on Friday, the barbaric acts of Hamas last weekend were horrific and resulted in the loss of many innocent victims.
What is now occurring with the loss of innocent lives across Israel and Palestine is heartbreaking and I stand behind the FA’s message of peace and unity for all.”