(Reuters) – Premier League players, managers and match officials will wear black armbands for the next round of matches as a mark of respect for those affected by the Israel-Hamas conflict, the English top-flight league said on Friday.
“We hope for peace, and our heartfelt sympathies are with the victims, their families and the communities impacted,” the league said.
The armbands will be worn in matches played from Saturday to Monday, with the league also announcing that they will make a donation to the British Red Cross.
Israel has been carrying out a bombing campaign in Gaza and has vowed to wipe out the Hamas Islamist group that rules it, after Hamas gunmen burst through the barrier fence surrounding the enclave on Oct. 7 and rampaged through Israeli towns and kibbutzes, killing 1,400 people, mainly civilians.
(Reporting by Tommy Lund in Gdansk; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
