The Israeli Defense Forces will suspend the demolition of a soccer field in a West Bank refugee camp, a security source said, following pressure from officials, including the Swiss ambassador to Israel and two of the world's largest soccer associations.
The IDF's Central Command had ordered the demolition of the field in Aida refugee camp near Bethlehem, citing its proximity to the separation barrier as a security risk. The IDF gave the order on December 31, 2025, Reuters reported last week.
An administrator at the youth center that manages the field, Mohammad Abu Srour, told Reuters that the army gave residents one week to demolish the structure themselves, or be sent a bill for the cost of demolition.
A Palestinian teen holds the demolition order of the football field, next to the West Bank barrier separating Aida refugee camp from Israel.
Several groups seeking to expel Israel from UEFA, the European soccer governing body, appealed to UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin regarding the demolition. Čeferin contacted Moshe "Shino" Zuares, chair of the Israel Football Association, on Thursday.
The president of FIFA, Gianni Infantino, also addressed the issue with the Swiss government. Swiss Ambassador to Israel Simon Geissbühler, in coordination with the Israeli Foreign Ministry and the Israel Football Association, contacted the IDF's Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories and Central Command this week.
After the associations' intervention, the IDF designated the demolition as non-urgent and froze the demolition order, which is now in the hands of Israeli political officials, the security source said.
The IDF Spokesperson's Unit said on Tuesday: "Along the [separation] barrier, there is a seizure order and a construction ban, and therefore the construction in the area was carried out illegally. [/b]The matter ... is being discussed in the relevant legal forums."
The Israel Football Association, or IFA, regularly receives inquiries from FIFA and UEFA over government and military actions, and forwards them to the relevant authorities.
The international soccer bodies had pushed for the order's suspension ahead of a vote in Switzerland held Tuesday. The resolution threatens to revoke UEFA's tax-exempt status in the country over the federation's cooperation with Israel in an alleged violation of international law.
On October 18, 2024, a UN rights committee adopted a decision from the International Court of Justice calling on Israel to return to pre-1967 borders.
Swiss lawmakers, led by councilman Theophile Schenker, filed a complaint against UEFA in the canton of Vaud – where the group's Nyon headquarters are located – claiming that the organization was violating international law by continuing to cooperate with IFA, since five registered teams play in the West Bank.
The vote needs a simple majority in the 150-member parliament to pass. UEFA's annual tax exemption is estimated at 15 to 30 million euros a year. If the vote passes, the tax-exemption issue will advance to the national body.
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