Israel-Palestine war: Tearful Ons Jabeur 'can't be happy' with tennis win amid Gaza attacks
An emotional Ons Jabeur fought back tears in a post-match interview on Wednesday, saying the videos of "children and babies" killed every day have been tough, referring to the ongoing Israeli war in Gaza.
"I am very happy with the win but I haven't been very happy lately," the Tunisian tennis star said after her first win in the WTA Finals in Cancun, Mexico.
The crowd applauded Jabeur as she sought to compose herself several times before speaking about the stream of images of children dying in Gaza.
“It’s very tough seeing children and babies dying every day. It’s heartbreaking," she added.
The three-time grand slam finalist said she would donate part of her prize money to help the Palestinians.
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"I can't be happy with this win," she added. "This is not a political message, it is humanity. I want peace in this world. That’s it."
Israeli air strikes have killed at least 9,061 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip since 7 October, according to health officials. Those killed include 3,760 children and 2,326 women.
The military operation came in the aftermath of a cross-border assault into southern Israel by Palestinian armed groups, who killed at least 1,400 people and took 240 others to Gaza as captives.
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Following the on-court interview, Jabeur remained visibly upset in the post-match press conference, where she continued to speak about the conflict in the besieged Gaza Strip.
Jaber spoke of her struggle to get much sleep because of all the “horrible” photos and videos emerging from Gaza.
'You go through horrible photos and videos every day - it doesn’t let me sleep well. The worst thing is I feel hopeless; I feel like I cannot do anything'
- Ons Jabeur
“I try to stay off social media as much as I can, but it’s very tough,” she told reporters.
“You go through horrible photos and videos every day - it doesn’t let me sleep or recover very well. The worst thing is I feel hopeless; I feel like I cannot do anything,” added the player ranked seventh in the world.
Jabeur made history in the world of tennis when, in 2020, she became the first Arab and Muslim player to qualify for a women’s singles Grand Slam final.
In the post-match press conference in Cancun, she added that winning the match “doesn’t mean anything in front of what’s been happening for weeks and weeks [in Gaza].
“I wish I could wave a magic wand and just end this and have peace for everybody,” she said.
"But it is frustrating, and maybe donating some money would help a little bit with what they have been going through. But I know money doesn't mean anything right now to them. So I wish freedom for everybody and, really, peace for everyone."
Jabeur will now face world number two Iga Swiatek in the final group match on Friday and must win to have a chance of qualifying for the semi-finals.
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