Action Against Discrimination (AAD) and its Chairman Jonathan Metliss have expressed disdain over former England footballer Gary Lineker’s latest tweet on social medium platform Twitter X, appearing to endorse comments from an academic who described Israel’s actions in Gaza as “ textbook genocide”, adding that this was a serious breach of the BBC’s social media guidelines.
AAD and Metliss had recently criticised Lineker for backing a proposed pro-Palestinian demonstration on Armistice Day and criticising the then Home Secretary Suella Braverman for calling such a demonstration a “hate march”. She had said that it was unacceptable to desecrate Armistice Day with a “ hate march through London “.Metliss added “ Lineker has not said one apologetic word nor made one criticism about the 1200 innocent Jews who were callously murdered by Hamas on 7 October and the 240 hostages that were taken at the same time.
Having been suspended once by the BBC from Match Of The Day, the disruptive and dangerous Lineker should now be removed from the BBC and generally once and for all, and for good reason. “Metliss explained how he felt that UK football, including the Football Association and other football authorities, clubs, politicians and the police had let down the UK Jewish Community. He cited various incidences such as the failure to light up the Wembley arch at the recent England v Australia game, the waiving of Palestinian flags by Liverpool and Celtic supporters and certain current players, the exclusion of the Star of David from the flag of the Chelsea Israel Supporters Club and the continuous chanting of the “ Y”word by Tottenham Hotspur supporters which Metliss and AAD have opposed for so long, as provoking and encouraging anti-Semitic behaviour by fans of other clubs.
Gary Lineker had expressed support for a video accusing Israel of 'textbook genocide' in Gaza. The video features an interview with Raz Segal, an Israeli associate professor of Holocaust and genocide studies at Stockton University in the US. Lineker re-shared the interview, emphasizing its significance by stating, "Worth 13 minutes of anyone's time." The move reignited discussions about Lineker's involvement in sensitive geopolitical matters and his use of social media to highlight contentious issues.