Suspend Israel from world climbing
To Marco Maria Scolaris, President of the International Federation of Sport Climbing, and every IFSC member federation:
As citizens from around the world, we urge you to suspend Israel from international climbing competitions until its government returns the climbing sites in the occupied Palestinian territory to Palestinian communities.
Help Palestinian climbers reclaim their mountains. Sign before a crucial vote in days:
Recent signers
To Marco Maria Scolaris, President of the International Federation of Sport Climbing, and every IFSC member federation:
Dear friends,
My name is Faris. I'm 24 years old, a physical therapist, and above all, I'm a rock climber.
Back in December 2024, my friend and I were hiking to our favourite climbing crag in Yabrud when we noticed a tent that wasn't there before.
It wasn't hikers spending the night. It was the beginning of a new illegal armed Israeli settler outpost. Standing there, I realised something that broke my heart: even climbing wasn't going to be spared by the occupation.
As settlers expand their outposts, Palestinians are losing access to the places where they’ve climbed for years. Climbers have been threatened, assaulted and driven away by Israeli soldiers.
The Israeli Climbing Federation has even labelled 6 climbing sites as being in Israel, when in actual fact they are in the Occupied Palestinian Territory or in illegal Israeli settlements. That's why I'm asking for your help today.
On 23 July, World Climbing will vote on whether to suspend Israel’s climbing federation. If enough of us speak out now, we can help push World Climbing to act - and show that Palestinian climbers like me cannot be forced off their own land in silence.
Tell Your Friends