(Reuters) -Israel's World Cup qualifiers in Norway and Italy are being overshadowed by security concerns, with the mayor of the northern Italian city of Udine warning about the situation ahead of the match scheduled to be played there next week.
Israel visit Norway on Saturday and Italy on Tuesday in Group I. The first match is at the Norway national team's home Ullevaal Stadium in Oslo while the Italy game will be hosted at Serie A club Udinese's Stadio Friuli, with limited attendances.
In recent
weeks, demonstrators have taken to the streets in Italy against Israel's offensive in Gaza and in solidarity with the humanitarian aid flotilla intercepted by the Israelis while trying to break a naval blockade off the Palestinian enclave.
Clashes with police were reported in cities including Rome and Milan.
The mayor of Udine, Alberto Felice de Toni, told Italy's LaPresse: "I had asked for the (Israel) match to be postponed because the atmosphere was not right for a national celebration as a national team game should be, but that request was not considered (by the authorities) for various reasons.
"It would have been a better idea to play it behind closed doors, to avoid throwing fuel on the fire."
Israel attacked Gaza after a Hamas-led attack in 2023 in which some 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies.
Palestinian health authorities say Israel's two-year ground and air campaign against Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip has killed more than 67,000 people, with nearly a third of the dead under the age of 18.
"We will end up with 6,000 people inside the stadium and 10,000 outside," De Toni added.
"It's a situation that was rather forced upon us, the situation is dramatic and paradoxical, there are going to be more people outside than in the arena."
Unlike some other European countries, such as the UK and France, Italy has not recognised a Palestinian state.
U.S. President Donald Trump's plan to end the war in Gaza is widely viewed as the most promising step yet towards peace.
EXTRA SECURITY IN OSLO
Israel's match in the Norwegian capital, Oslo, will also see heightened security measures. No fan zone will be set up, with the capacity reduced to about 3,000 and the roads around the Ullevaal closed off several hours before kick-off.
A protest in Oslo has been announced by the Norwegian Palestine Committee to coincide with the match.
The Norwegian Football Federation's (NFF) General Secretary Karl-Petter Loeken said on Monday that it would be safe to attend the game.
"Yes, we do want people to come to the match. We have done, and will continue to do, a great deal to ensure safe conditions," he told reporters.
The NFF has said proceeds from the game will be donated to a humanitarian cause, adding that they will be earmarked for the Doctors without Borders organisation’s emergency relief efforts in Gaza and surrounding areas affected by the war.
Norway are top of Group I with 15 points ahead of Italy and Israel on nine, although the Italians have a game in hand. The group winners qualify for next year's World Cup in North America with the runners-up going into the playoffs.
(Reporting by Tommy Lund in Gdansk and Angelo Amante in Rome; Editing by Ken Ferris)
