Soccer (illustration)
Soccer (illustration)iStock

World soccer's governing body, FIFA, has again delayed its decision on a Palestinian Authority bid to have Israel suspended from international soccer over the war in Gaza, Reuters reported.

FIFA said late on Friday it would now consider the Palestine Football Association's (PFA) proposals against the Israel Football Association (IFA) in October.

The Palestinian Authority’s (PA) soccer association announced in April that it would call for action against Israel at the annual FIFA congress.

FIFA already postponed the decision on the PA’s request, saying last month the legal assessment would now be shared with its council by August 31.

The Zurich-based body said it had now moved the assessment back to October.

"FIFA has received the independent legal assessment of the Palestine Football Association's proposals against Israel," FIFA said, according to Reuters.

"This assessment will be sent to the FIFA Council to review in order that the subject can be discussed at its next meeting which will take place in October."

FIFA declined to give further details of the assessment, or when in October the meeting would take place.

The PA has sought FIFA action against Israel in the past. In 2017, FIFA decided it would not intervene in the PA’s bid to ban six Israeli teams in Judea and Samaria.

The PA claims that the presence of the teams in Judea and Samaria is in breach of FIFA statutes, which forbids another member association playing on another territory without permission.

The PA soccer federation has also complained that Israel hampers its activities, including limiting the movement of players between Palestinian Authority-assigned areas of Judea and Gaza.