JERUSALEM – A World Chess Federation tournament has been moved from SaudiArabia to Russia after concerns over Israeli players being barred, thefederation announced Tuesday.
Israeli players backed by a New York-based NGO, The Lawfare Project, werethreatening legal action over not being allowed to play in Saudi Arabia,which has no diplomatic ties with the Jewish state.
The federation, known as FIDE, said it decided to move its World Rapid andBlitz Championships scheduled for December 25-31 to Russia “due to thepolicy adopted by Saudi organisers”.
The decision was made “in spite of the generous financial offer made bySaudi Arabia”, FIDE said in a statement.
“FIDE will no longer stage its official events in the countries that denyentry visa and fair treatment to all the eligible players,” it said.
It added that “officials in Riyadh could not guarantee an entry torepresentatives of all the national federations who had a right toparticipate in the event”.
It is not the first time Israeli players have raised such concerns.
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In December 2017, the Israel Chess Federation said it was seekingcompensation from the organisers of last year’s World Rapid and BlitzChampionships, also in Saudi Arabia, after the Gulf state refused to issuevisas for its players.
But Israel has made headway in past months in its efforts towards ties withArab nations in the Gulf that do not officially recognise the country,including through sport.
In October, Israeli Sports Minister Miri Regev toured the UAE’s famedSheikh Zayed mosque, Israel’s communications minister delivered a speech inDubai and the Israeli national anthem was played at a judo competition inAbu Dhabi.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also paid a surprise visit toOman in October. – APP/AFP
