Shahid Afridi’s picture with Jews lands him in trouble at home
Jewish group had claimed Afridi had supported their protest
Former cricketer Shahid Afridi has clarified that he thought that a recent photograph with a Jewish group happened because he thought it was an ordinary fan interaction.
Taking to X (formerly Twitter) after the photo went viral, Afridi said that he was walking down a street in UK when some people asked him for a photo and he obliged.
“Imagine strolling down a street in Manchester (UK) and so-called fans approach you for a selfie. You oblige, and moments later, they upload it as some form of Zionist endorsement,” he wrote.
“Unbelievable! Please don’t believe everything that is uploaded.”
He went on to add that the photo does not signify his support for any situation where ‘human lives are at stake’.
“Seeing innocent lives in Palestine suffer is truly heartbreaking. Thus, any photo or association shared by in Manchester does not reflect my support for any situation where human lives are at stake,” he wrote.
“I take pictures with fans from all over the globe, and this situation was no different,” he said.
Afridi’s statement comes after a group named ‘North West Friends of Israel’ uploaded a photo of Afridi standing with the group’s chair and deputy chair. People holding placards can be seen in the background.
The post claimed that Afridi had lent support for a protest asking for Israeli hostages to be released.
“Pakistani international cricketer @SAfridiOfficial stopped to offer his support for our call to release the hostages at our NWFOI vigil last Sunday in Manchester,” the post said.
“Thank you for your support, Shahid!” it added.
NWFOI describes itself as a ‘grassroots movement’ in north-western UK that advocates Israel.
Meanwhile rights activist Fatima Bhutto and Pakistani politician Shireen Mazari both lambasted Afridi for his picture with the Jewish group members.
Fatima wrote on X that ‘Awaiting a comment from @SAfridiOfficial on what he was doing at a friends of Israel event’, later on she wrote in a thread that he has clarified it.
Mazari came hard on Afridi and wrote on X that, ‘Are we to believe you couldn’t read the pamphlets being displayed or the placards as picture was being taken? Their identity & intent was never hidden so please don’t assume we are all fools. You knew whom you were posing for pictures with. Shameful’.
It seems knowingly or unknowingly but Afridi has landed himself in hot waters with this picture of his, as both Pakistani liberals and conservatives will take him to the cleaners for what is worldwide perceived as a common thing but not in Pakistan.
