Dutch football player El Ghazi suing Mainz for his dismissal over pro-Palestine social media post

By Can Erozden

Anwar El Ghazi, a Dutch winger of Moroccan descent, has taken legal action against Mainz 05 for being dismissed by the German club over a pro-Palestine social media post, a German daily reported Wednesday.

Bild said that El Ghazi, 28, is suing Mainz after the German Bundesliga club terminated his contract earlier in November after the former Ajax and Aston Villa winger posted on his Instagram story where he expressed his support for the Palestinian people amid the Israel-Gaza war.

Mainz first suspended and then warned El Ghazi over the "River to the sea" phrase on Instagram.

"From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free" is a Palestinian slogan that refers to the area between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea, which includes Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

El Ghazi has been a free agent after he was released by Mainz on Nov. 3 for "statements and posts on social media."

He later responded to the termination of his contract on X, writing "Stand for what is right, even if it means standing alone."

"The loss of my livelihood is nothing when compared to the hell being unleashed on innocent and vulnerable in Gaza," said the former Dutch international.

Before Mainz, El Ghazi played for Dutch club Ajax and PSV Eindhoven, England's Aston Villa and Everton, and France's Lille.

The government media office in Gaza on Wednesday announced that the death toll from Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7 has risen to 11,500, including 4,710 children and 3,160 women.

“The number of deaths among medical personnel has reached 200,” the office said in a statement on Telegram.

It further said that 22 civil defense personnel and 51 journalists have also been killed, while the number of injured people has reached 29,800, with about 70% of them women and children.

Thousands of buildings, including hospitals, mosques and churches, have also been damaged or destroyed in Israel's relentless air and ground attacks on the besieged enclave since last month.

The Israeli death toll, meanwhile, is around 1,200, according to official figures.