The fans behaved wrongly why is the team punished. If this is a Democracy then anyone has the right to express their feelings OUT LOUD. Stifling the right is an assault on our democratic existence. Why is it that the left can state what they want but will not accept any thing being said against their view. Israel IS NOT a DEMOCRACY it is a Mockery.

into shark-infested water.

There is a feeling of anger against Rabin, amongst a huge portion of Israelis because of his recognition of Palestinians which created a large part of the problem that we have today. People also resent him for wanting to give away parts of Israel. Why should people that feel this way be forced to take part in a remembrance ceremony? Asking the fans was the mistake .. and it wasn't hundreds that protested but thousands. Is it only the outgoing left that should be allowed to protest and throw stones at the police? Let's bring on the elections and get rid of Beilin and company for ever! The polls show that Meretz won't be in the next Knesset. And let's support Friedman! Why is the Superior Court deciding whether to cut off power to Gaza!? This should be a 100% political decision!

there is no consensus - in fact the current gov't has single digit approval ratings, it just shows the deep divide between "regular folks" and the rarified left-wing extremist elites who have taken over the country.

Freedom of speech means tolerating speech that you despise. This is the same issue as flag burning in the U.S. One can respond to rowdy behavior but not to the fact that these people do not honor Rabin.

Someone say cure worse than the disease.

If an IFA official said "This incident has nothing to do with freedom of expression." as qouted from the article then the IFA needs to find officials who understand the basic tenets of democracy. Absolutely the fans right to express themselves is a basic right supported by the law.

When Rabin was replaced by Peres, he was the most hated person in Israel. He brought terrorists, deaths and distruction.

But evidently in Israel it is only for the left. Fredom includes speech that may be ugly to some but the person has a right to it. Again and again we see that democracy here is a sham. Only if you agree with the left do you receive the benefits.

Thats the real goal to end free speech in Israel and make the left the only legal voting option. The fact is this incident shows how disgusted the vast majority of Israelis are with Oslo. The left knows it will never win an election in the Jewish sector and therefore seeks to criminalize criticism of it.

Eh, for a "progressive" state that does not believe in collective punishment, can someone redefine this decision for me?

at a gay parade in TA, there was an announcement marking the anniversary of the murder of Rehavam Ze'evi , does anyone seriously believe the reaction would be different? That the sponsors of the parade would be punished?

The left must understand when you set someone up as an Icon there will be people who will smash up.Rabin is far from guiltless people know about his urder of people swimming from the Altelana,his drunkeness, his remarks 'sacrifices for peace' and let them spin like pinwheels' concerning the residents of yesha. The left in Israel reminds of old soviets

Why did the high court rule that a Brith may be held in a prison ? [ amir's son's ] Had it not to be a prison administration decision ? or do you agree because this fits your political views ? Can you be sure that without Oslo we would not had worse , much worse problems ? Regarding Betar's "supporters" . They were also shouting against players of African origin some time ago . Do you agree ? would you agree that Israeli players abroad would be insulted ?

now you are not allowed to express opposition. if this was really about respect for our dead leaders then why is the graveyard in tel aviv with all our leaders grave in such disarray and noone cares. it was a terrible reaction by the beitar fans and should be condemned but to make it akin to a crime is ludicrous and shows how much length the nation has taken to make rabin into a saint.

Just because they're not criminal Leftists, they're not entitled to "Freedom of Expression" and express their TRUTHFUL FEELINGS that MOST OF THIS COUNTRY SHARE? MOST Israelis are Rightists and agree to their booing Rabin. Communism existed a bit over 70 years. Hopefully, the Zionist Communists will end much earlier! With such "leaders" in the knesset, it might indeed end very soon, be'ezrat Hashem!

...if it were in England then the price to pay would be far heavier. Its not about freedom of speech as according to #10. If it was why cant they chant Nazi slogans or racism against non Jews (which I am sure that they frequently do)? This is out of respect for a assassinated Prime Minister of Israel. His killing was an affront to Democracy whether you believe in his policies or not. If you agree vote for him, if you dont vote or run against him. If it was right or celebratory to kill leaders anyone disagrees with then Democracy would break down and we might as well live in Sodom and Gomorrah However, if you are low on the evolutionary chain like Beitar fans...what can you expect? Why was the German Iranian striker banned for not playing aginst Israel? There is freedom of speech and action.... it was about of disrespect, especially with Germany's history...etc When it comes down to it, Beitar fans were showing the same moronic traits as average English/Dutch/French/German etc football fans because they are just numbskulls and base. They deserved a lot heavier punishment!

what a ridiculous punishment. they should not play for a year................and then the team should simply disappear. these betar fans are creatures/animals/monsters.

Dont forget the racism in Israel. These countermeasures are to bring sanity into the soccer matches whereever there are hooligans and trouble-makers..

The scandal is not Betar, the scandal is a population being denied the freedom of speech The idol of Rabin worship seems to override democratic rights Normal people don't rend honour to a serial killer

They incite much more hatred then most people in this country.

There are very few people who support the freedom of speech and other civil liberties more than me, that being said I accept reasonable limits. When you go to a sporting venue, you do not have freedom of speech, it is not a public venue, even if owned by a public entity (-ie- the city or county in which it is located) because as it is being used by a team, they have the management rights to the stadium. Just as they can deny entrance to anybody, they can limit their right to express certain sentiments. The freedom of speech means that the government cannot place curbs on your free expression of ideas and beliefs, not that a company (or in this case a sporting Club) cannot limit your expressions while in their venue, be it an office or a football stadium.

This German player of Iranian origin did'nt want to play in Israel because of his fears for his family in Iran . Playing here would also caused him great problems if he wanted to visit his birth country once .

Fans have a tendency to yell out the most crude and vile language. In their hyped up and often drunk state they yell out a lot of obsenities. It might not be comfortable to hear, but it has become the nature of these events. Should the team and its fans be policed? Can there really be controlable limits to what fans scream out? Why should these morality police be given a say as to how one verbally expresses himself at such a venue? Has Beitar ever been penalized for their fans yelling out vile curses? I imagine that if the fans would curse the name of G-d, G-d forbid, there wouldn't be any fuss, but Rabin has fanatically been fashioned into a Golden Calf and the people insist on dancing around his memory and luring the rest to dance with them. Democracy.... yeah right.

One of Cabel's better ideas for some time now...undoubtedly a state-of-the art cure

is this a bylaw? who decides these things? just curious