Sport, yes, but not at any cost. Basketball player Mohammad Amini has made the decision to no longer wear the jersey of the Iranian national team due to the repression that has been raging for several weeks in the country. The player, who plays in Nancy, explained this in an Instagram publication.
“Since I was little, I dreamed of one day wearing the jersey of my country’s national team. It wasn’t just a simple jersey for me,” he writes of the special connection it represents for him with the Iranian people.
More than 6,800 dead
“Today, at a time when my people are in mourning, not wearing the national team jersey is for me a tribute to the inhabitants of my land,” he continues. My heart is filled with pain, I’m not ready to wear this jersey. But my respect and commitment to the Iranian people will remain in my heart forever. »
His post has been liked 127,000 times on Instagram, much more than his number of followers (around 37,300 subscribers). His compatriot Behnam Yakhchali also announced at the end of January that he would no longer play for Iran in the current context. According to the NGO Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), the repression left more than 6,800 dead. It also recorded 50,000 arrests.
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