Norwegians mounted major security operation to keep Israeli team safe but protests were still noisy

October 13 – Norway defeated Israel 5-0 in World Cup qualifying following an Erling Haaland hat-trick and the biggest security operation for a sporting event in the country since the Lillehammer 1994 Winter Olympic Games. 

Some 1,500 pro-Palestine protesters marched to the Ullevaal Stadium ahead of the the 2026 World Cup qualifier, before the police used tear gas and ultimately arrested 22 people at the tail end of the demonstration. Inside the venue, Norwegian fans raised a Palestinian flag and a banner that read ‘Let Children Live’. Pro-Palestine protests persisted even after the cease-fire in Gaza.

To ensure the security of the visiting team, Norwegian authorities had mounted the biggest security operation for a sporting event in the country since the Lillehammer 1994 Winter Olympic Games, including a no-fly zone and road closures. Israel’s delegation reportedly included 16 Mossad agents.

Norwegian fans and the Norwegian FA (NFF) have long been outspoken about their support for Palestine. The NFF said that it would donate the proceeds from Saturday’s match to Doctors Without Borders for humanitarian work in Gaza. UK media reported recently that UEFA was moving towards a vote to ban Israel from the international game, but that idea was paused when a US-led peace plan for Gaza was accepted by both sides. NFF president Lise Klaveness indicated that momentum towards a vote on Israel had been building but confirmed that a meeting was never scheduled.

Russia has been banned from the global game since the invasion of Ukraine. National team captains from various European countries put pressure on football’s governing bodies, saying they’d refuse to play Russia. Football’s stance over Israel and Palestine has been much more fraught.

Israel has remained an active member of UEFA and at the last FIFA Congress in Luque, Paraguay, the world governing body once again kicked the problem of Israeli settlement clubs in the West Bank into the long grass.

On Saturday, protesters felt Israel are being let off the hook. “We have a long way to go to hold Israel accountable for the crimes that have been committed,” said head of the Palestine Committee Line Khateeb.

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