[ti:Israel Angry over Argentina’s Cancellation of Football Match] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.04]Many Israelis were angry Wednesday after Argentina suddenly [00:05.14]cancelled plans to send players to a sporting event. [00:10.52]The Israeli national football team and Argentina's team [00:15.19]were to have played Saturday night in Jerusalem. [00:19.84]The football match was to take place just days [00:23.68]before the start of World Cup championship action in Russia. [00:29.32]The cancellation followed protests in support of Palestinian rights. [00:36.00]Some Israeli officials accused Argentina's Lionel Messi [00:41.04]and other players of giving in to terrorism. [00:45.88]In the United States, European football is called soccer. [00:51.80]Argentina is one of the most popular national teams among Israelis. [00:58.28]Many people were hoping to see Messi, [01:01.24]one of the game's stars, in person. [01:04.88]But after intense Palestinian protests, [01:09.12]Argentina announced its team would not attend the event. [01:14.84]Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu [01:18.32]called Argentine President Mauricio Macri and urged him to intervene. [01:24.60]But his efforts were unsuccessful. [01:28.76]Late Wednesday, Israel's Sports Ministry said [01:32.85]that a "negotiation" about the match was underway, [01:36.64]but gave no other details. [01:40.20]Israeli defense minister Avigdor Lieberman said, [01:44.32]"It's unfortunate the soccer knights of Argentina [01:47.93]did not withstand the pressure of the Israeli-hating inciters." [01:53.68]He added that their "only goal is to harm our basic right [01:58.27]to self-defense and bring about the destruction of Israel." [02:04.16]Jibril Rajoub leads the Palestinian football association. [02:09.92]He had called on Arabs to burn Lionel Messi pictures [02:14.18]and Messi T-shirts if he played the match. [02:18.72]Rajoub has long attempted to get FIFA, [02:22.12]football's world governing body, [02:24.76]and the International Olympic Committee to take action against Israel. [02:31.12]Rajoub believes Israel should be punished [02:34.29]for restricting movement of Palestinian players, [02:37.52]and for forming teams in Jewish West Bank settlements. [02:43.08]He had also objected to having the match played in Jerusalem. [02:48.52]Palestinians claim the eastern part of the city as their capital. [02:54.60]Following the move, Rajoub spoke with reporters in Ramallah. [03:00.20]He had a picture of him with Messi and a sign reading: [03:04.41]"From Palestine, thank you Messi." [03:08.36]Rajoub had accused Israel of playing politics with the game [03:12.94]by moving it from the port of Haifa to Jerusalem. [03:17.44]He said, "They tried to use sport as a tool for political ends, [03:23.46]and for this I think, they failed." [03:26.72]But Israel's sports minister, Miri Regev said, [03:31.56]the game was moved for safety reasons. [03:35.88]Regev claimed that "terrorist" groups had made threats [03:40.12]against Argentina's players and their families. [03:44.72]She said the groups sent them images of dead children, [03:48.84]but gave no further evidence. [03:52.52]The Argentinean move raised fears [03:55.46]that it could lead to future boycotts of Jerusalem. [04:00.72]The fears come as Israel is preparing to host [04:04.09]the Eurovision song competition next year. [04:08.60]Israeli organizers noted an offer to have the game played in Barcelona instead. [04:15.60]But it is not likely that will happen. [04:19.68]Argentina begins its first World Cup game in Russia [04:24.64]against Iceland on June 16. [04:28.32]The team then plays Croatia on June 21 and Nigeria on June 26. [04:36.80]I'm Jonathan Evans. [04:38.44]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM