Cape Town - A soccer team comprising Palestinian refugees of the Aida Refugee Camp in Bethlehem, Palestine, have arrived in Cape Town for scheduled matches set to take place this month.
Sport4Humanity (S4H), the Sports Stepping Stones Foundation (SSS), the Green Brigade, and Africa4Palestine is hosting the Lajee Celtic Club of the Aida Refugee Camp for three games in South Africa, as part of the Aida2Africa tour.
The team arrived in Johannesburg for the first leg of the trip coordinated by Africa4Palestine on June 28 and played one game on Saturday.
They arrived in Cape Town yesterday (Mon) and are expected to play two games on July 3 and 7 against the SSS Football Academy and Garlandale FC respectively.
The match against the SSS Football Academy will take place at Erica Park Sports Ground, Chestnut Way, Belhar at 7pm. The second match against Garlandale FC will take place at the Garlandale Football Club at 314 Imam Haron Road, Lansdowne.
Both matches are free to attend. The team was warmly welcomed during a dinner in Lansdowne, on Monday.
Launched in 2017, the Lajee Celtic Club is a football academy in Aida Refugee Camp, supported by the Lajee Center and the Green Brigade, providing young Palestinian refugee footballers with support to realise their dreams.
Laudium Academy v Lajee Celtic
The first of three matches during our Aida to Africa tour of South Africa.
Come see us in Cape Town next. pic.twitter.com/OT2lasp0QF
SSS CEO Abubaker Cassiem said: “SSS has for a long time had a strong relationship with Palestine and that became clear to the world during the Football4Humanity campaign.
“When the Green Brigades contacted me, there was no question in mind, we were going to help them host Lajee Celtic.
“Sport is at the heart of what we do; it is in our bones and we believe that sport has the ability to unify. By continuing these initiatives, we create a support system for Palestinian teams and provide an opportunity for them to showcase their stories with the world.”
Mohammad Al-Azza of Lajee Celtic expressed his gratitude to everyone involved. He said although it was not an easy decision to travel, it was an important thing to do.
“We have lived through similar struggles, living under racist colonisation and apartheid regimes, and we can learn more about the South African experience, tradition and culture first-hand.
“Also, it’s a place for us, as Palestinians, to raise our voice at the same time the genocidal war on Gaza and ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people, especially in Gaza is ongoing.
“It was not an easy decision to make, to travel at this moment, but we believe spreading the message abroad is important.”