Doha: The playing of national anthem before sporting events is one of the most poignant moments at sporting arenas.
On Monday, however, the Iranian footballers remained grim-faced as they refused to hum the national anthem which was played on the PA system at the Khalifa International Stadium ahead of their clash against England here.
Millions watching the game couldn’t fathom why the footballers remained mum. A section of the crowd even booed the players.
Watch the video shared on social media by several user:
Iran players refuse to sing the national anthem before their World Cup match v England.#ENGIRN #IranProtests #IranRevolution2022 #WorldCup pic.twitter.com/VgaPf4R1yZ
— James Melville (@JamesMelville) November 21, 2022
According to news agencies, the Iranian World Cup team declined to sing the national anthem in apparent support for anti-government protesters back home.
Iran captain Alireza Jahanbakhsh said before the match that the team would decide “collectively” whether or not to sing the anthem.
Iran has been engulfed by widespread protests since mid-September following the death of 22-year old woman Mahsa Amini in police custody. She was nabbed by the police on September 17 for not wearing her hijab properly.
The protests gathered steam rapidly and turned into a virtual revolt against the ruling regime’s regressive rules which often hurts women’s rights.
It is being considered to be one of Iran’s biggest protests since the Islamic revolution of 1979.
Nearly 300 protestors have been killed in the crackdown by the Iranian authorities.
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