German soccer club cancels signing of Israeli player over post urging IDF to ‘wipe Gaza off the map’

German soccer club Fortuna Düsseldorf said it was cancelling the signing of Israeli striker Shon Weissman due to his social media activity reflecting extremist views.

“We conducted a thorough review of the player, but ultimately decided not to sign him,” the club said.

While the club’s 𝕏 account initially had brushed off criticisms as “judging people you don’t know based on a Wikipedia article,” it later announced the decision not to sign Weissman.

The cancelling of Weissman’s signing came after widespread public backlash against a number of posts he liked and shared on social media, which were quickly deleted.

Among these was a call for the IDF to “wipe Gaza off the map,” and a post saying there were “no innocents” in Gaza, according to a report from Haaretz.

The reported stated that “Weissman’s agent later said the posts and likes – since deleted – were not made by the player himself but by a social media manager who had access to his accounts.”

Yet Weissman’s agent Boaz Goren has since acknowledged that the social media activity was indeed done by Weissman, saying that “he liked a few posts, commented on a photo and deleted everything five minutes later on his own accord.”

“He always expressed regret about the content he seemingly supported during a time of deep pain and grief,” Goren further said. “But the internet today is a dangerous place, there’s no room for mistakes or for regret when the public launches a witch hunt.” Weissman himself also put out a statement following news of the canceled signing.

“It is both possible and necessary to oppose harm to innocent people on both sides,” he said. “But I will not allow myself to be portrayed as someone who promotes hate, based on three likes and a single comment that was immediately deleted. If anyone finds that hard to accept, they should look again at what happened on October 7.”

“In the end, a person will always stand by their people, no matter the circumstances,” he continued. “No outsider can ever truly understand what we’ve been through. Loyalty is not up for debate. Especially not when your people are still burying their dead.”