UEFA announced on Wednesday that Celtic had been fined 15,200 pounds ($19,000) for their supporters’ waving of Palestinian flags during their Champions League encounter against Atletico Madrid last month in Glasgow.
UEFA said in a statement that the hundreds of flags were considered to be “provocative messages of an offensive nature”.
In a video that was extensively shared on Instagram, supporters who had been advised by the Scottish club not to display flags prior to the Oct. 25 game were heard singing “You’ll Never Walk Alone” while carrying the Palestinian flags.
Two enormous banners with the words “Free Palestine” and “Victory to the Resistance” were also raised by supporters at Celtic Park.
According to the Hamas-run administration in Gaza, the conflict with Israel has claimed the lives of at least 13,300 Palestinians, at least 5,600 of them were children.
After four games, Celtic sits one point down in Group E of the Champions League.
In addition, they were fined 10,000 pounds for using fireworks and obstructing traffic.