Kyrie Offers to Pay Al-Shaair's $11,941 Fine for Gaza Tribute — SkimNews
Get the Sports newsletter
Daily sports — scores, transfers, the storylines from the leagues you actually follow. Free.
- Kyrie Irving publicly offered to pay Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair's $11,941 NFL fine for writing the name of Palestinian girl Hind Rajab on his eye black during Sunday's game against the Buffalo Bills.
- Al-Shaair received the fine as standard NFL procedure for displaying personal messages without prior approval; it is his second such penalty this year after a January fine for wearing 'stop the genocide' on his eye black.
- Hind Rajab, a Palestinian girl, was killed by Israeli forces along with six members of her family when their car came under fire in Gaza City in 2024; the Israeli military acknowledged for the first time last month that it opened fire on the vehicle and has opened a criminal investigation.
- Al-Shaair, who is Muslim, has used the NFL's 'My Cause, My Cleats' program over several seasons to support Palestinian causes on the field, saying, 'If my platform can bring even a little hope to families in Palestine, then that is what I want to use it for.'
- Irving has been a leading public supporter of Palestinians, posting about the needs of Palestinian children on social media and wearing shirts honoring journalists killed in Gaza.
Why it matters: Irving's offer to cover the fine amplifies visibility for the Hind Rajab case and continues a pattern of athlete-led Palestinian advocacy inside the NFL, even as the league's uniform rules treat such messages as prohibited personal statements subject to standard fines.
Ask SkimNews
