NFL player Azeez Al-Shaair wears Gaza girl's name on eyeblack

LONDON — Houston Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair wore the name of Maryam Ghanem, a two-and-a-half-year-old girl from Gaza, on his eyeblack during the team's NFL game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley Stadium on Sunday, October 18, according to Al Jazeera.

Al Jazeera said it was the fifth consecutive week that Al-Shaair has honoured a Palestinian child in this way. Ghanem was the sole survivor of her family after an Israeli strike hit their home in the Remal neighbourhood of Gaza City on Wednesday, Al Jazeera reported. Her mother was killed, according to the report. Ghanem suffered severe burns and was taken to hospital for treatment.

A Telegram channel, Quds News Network, posted a similar account of the tribute. The post has not been independently confirmed.

Al-Shaair was fined by the NFL for an earlier tribute, according to Al Jazeera. The league fined him $11,491 for breaching its code of conduct on players' clothing and equipment during a match against the Buffalo Bills. Basketball player Kyrie Irving offered to pay the fine, Al Jazeera said. Al-Shaair told reporters that a life "is priceless", according to the same report.

It was not immediately clear whether the NFL has taken action over the Wembley tribute. Al Jazeera reported that Al-Shaair has been reportedly threatened with removal from games, but the report did not say who made the threat.

Background

Al-Shaair began his current season on September 13 by wearing the name of Hind Rajab, a five-year-old girl killed in Gaza on January 29, 2024, after Israeli soldiers opened fire on her family's stranded car, according to Al Jazeera.

Al Jazeera described a United States-brokered ceasefire in Gaza. It said Israeli air strikes continue to hit the territory regularly. The broadcaster's report did not give casualty figures for the latest strike.