Palestine FA delegation denied Canadian visas ahead of FIFA Congress
Jibril Rajoub and Firas Abu Hilal amongst at least three individuals whose visas were rejected.
At least three officials from the Palestine Football Association (PFA) have been denied visas to enter Canada to attend this month’s FIFA Congress. The annual gathering of all 212 Member Associations is due to be held in Vancouver and is seen as the unofficial kickoff ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup held in Canada, Mexico, and the United States.
There was no official reason for the visa denial but the following statement was released by a spokesperson for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC):
“Applications are considered on a case-by-case basis based on the information presented by the applicant. All clients who submit an application to IRCC are subject to comply with eligibility and admissibility requirements, as part of the process, regardless of their nationality. All applicants receive thorough correspondence from IRCC regarding the decision on their application.”
This is not the first time Jibril Rajoub- the President of the PFA has been denied the ability to travel on official football business. In June 2024, Rajoub was denied permission to enter Australia despite the fact that he had been in the country on two previous occasions including as PFA chief during the 2015 AFC Asian Cup.
In response to that decision Rajoub told ABC News that "There's someone, somewhere in the government of Australia who are behaving under the pressure or influence of the Israeli stupid and crazy government."
The Palestine Football Association has yet to respond to Football Palestine’s request for comment.
There is no shortage of speculation as to why this decision was taken with some claiming it is the result of statements made at a press conference last month following the light sanctions FIFA levied on Israel in the aftermath of the Gaza genocide.
That theory does not hold water as the PFA would need the cooperation of the executive to bring any motions to a vote. Gianni Infantino has previously stated that he thinks “the conflict is over.”
It is perhaps more likely that the Canadian government was lobbied to take this stance. The PFA has since asked for FIFA’s help to intervene— they too have yet to comment on the matter.
Inevitably a lot will be made of Jibril Rajoub’s history- which ignores the fact that the General Secretary and Chief Legal Officer have no history of armed resistance or outlandish statements.
It is worth noting that Jibril Rajoub has traveled to the United States- where it is far harder to procure a visa- before and was there as recently as 2017.
In spite of his arrest on terrorism charges as a teenager Jibril Rajoub has been a darling of Western liberals for three decades now. The gusto to which he cracked down on dissenters during the Oslo Accord era won him many friends. So much so that his name was even floated as a potential replacement to Yasser Arafat and more recently to current Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
In 2022, Jibril Rajoub met with Robin Wettlaufer, the Canadian representative to the Palestinian Authority, who described as “A great friend to Canada.” Canada has since upgraded its mission to an embassy following Canada’s recognition of Palestine last year.
Rajoub has served as PFA President since 2008 and has won all four of his elections by acclimation. His current term is up in 2028.
No other delegations have been denied visas according to Jake Landau who also reported on this story.