The head of the Referees Committee of the Iraqi Football Federation, Najah Rahm, announced the temporary suspension of international referee Muhammad Tariq Ahmed due to a tattoo that the committee asked him not to reveal more than once during matches.
Rahm said, “More than once we asked the international referee, Mohamed Tariq, to cover his tattoos during matches, but he refuses to do so. It is true that these things may not have been prohibited by law, but they are not among our traditions and customs, and sometimes they put pressure on the atmosphere of the matches, so we decided to stop him temporarily, and this is not a disciplinary measure as much as it is an opportunity for correction.” And review.”
The international referee, who is the son of the secretary of the Iraqi Federation and former head of the referees committee, the late Tariq Ahmed, wears a tattoo of a lion on his left thigh, and another of the map of Iraq on his chest.
Rahm added, “International referee Muhammad Tariq Ahmed is one of the talented and important referees and has a great future ahead of him in the field of arbitration. We hope that the future will not neglect him because of these appearances.”
For his part, referee Muhammad Tariq said, “The tattoo I wear does not contain a racist reference. The lion tattoo and the map of Iraq represent the symbolism of Iraqis.”
He added, “The Iraqi constitution does not prohibit this, let alone the legal texts approved by the International Federation (FIFA) in this regard, as long as the tattoo does not represent any racist message. I filed a grievance with the Iraqi Federation and will file a lawsuit regarding this in one of the courts.”
2023-12-20 22:55:01
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