KAE AEK made its announcement about the events in Jerusalem and the game against Hapoel Jerusalem for the Basketball Champions League.

With its detailed statement, the union demands the exemplary punishment of the team from Israel and emphasizes that AEK has become a victim of terrorism and violence.

At the same time, he announced that he was appealing to CAS against the first-instance decision on the events of the second game in Liosia. We remind you that the BCL imposed a fine on AEK, but also a penalty for holding their matches in the competition in the 2023-24 season without the presence of fans in the stadium.

AEK’s announcement in detail:

AEK BC recognizes its responsibility to update on everything that has happened recently and announces the following:

Congratulations to Hapoel Jerusalem on qualifying for the F4 of the 2022-2023 BCL, but we expect FIBA ​​and relevant institutions to take action to learn what our team’s mission in Israel is in the margins and context of WW3. Match has witnessed Hapoel – AEK for the BCL Quarterfinals.

We call for the exemplary punishment of Hapoel and his two senior hooligan agents/executives for events that took place after game 2, but also before and during game 3. Any non-punishment or light punishment of them constitutes a scandal!

We expect the Hellenic Basketball Federation to show similar sensitivity as in the case of Game 2 with Hapoel and publicly and unequivocally condemn what happened in Game 3 in Jerusalem, which was unprecedented for a European game.

Our group fell victim to terrorism and violence in Jerusalem. It was an orchestrated attempt to intimidate and influence our athletes and the other members of the competition department, which was organized by the Hapoel administration itself.

The attack on the Mission Hotel at 3am on game day by Hapoel fans (who claimed responsibility by posting video of their attack online) with barrels and firecrackers represents an act that will set basketball back centuries. while our athletes and coaches trained sleepless and tired in the morning and competed in the evening.

The jungle conditions on the field before, during and after the game were unprecedented and it was just fortunate that no injuries were caused, from the barrage of objects being thrown onto our bench, from Hapoel’s bullying of our players and staff Supporter. Our bench was in a suffocating cord, people from the so-called security (as there was no real security and no police order) and fans of the home team, with the result that our coach’s instructions were in some cases given from inside the pitch. The photo and television documents prove the truth of the word.

Shortly before the end of the game, a manager of our team was attacked (from behind) by a high-ranking agent (!) from Hapoel and other managers of the home team.

We denounce the sports fans Hapoel’s false blackmail towards the BCL, before the punishment was announced and also afterwards for a possible move to the Eurocup. Practices that face us and that we have never implemented during our tenure and for whatever reason.

Insults and slogans against our federation and against our athletes on the field, in announcements, everywhere, do not honor the organization, but they will not deter us.

We categorically state that we do not allow anyone to question the values ​​and ideals bequeathed to us by our founders and ancestors, as well as the democratic ideals of our followers. Both AEK BC (of Byzantine origin and refugee origin) and their followers have taken the lead in social contribution actions in the vast majority of them, supporting refugees everywhere and embracing all our fellow human beings of all nationalities and all religions, always respecting diversity and secularism, and that cannot be disputed.

The failure of the referees to stop the game represents another very serious breach of the ridiculous things that happened in Jerusalem and which are seen as a continuation of the fake news from the people of Hapoel throughout the previous period and also the threats against the lives of our athlete Akil Mitchell, as he himself admitted with his personal intervention/revelation on the internet yesterday.

Is the Mitchell case really being investigated by the BCL or by a prosecutor?

And one more thing: we apologized to Hapoel for our share of the responsibility for the second game. Will Hapoel management apologize for everything that happened in game three?

For the sake of history, we note that in the game of Ano Liosion, our fans respected the Hapoel team’s mission in all cases, while on their bench sat full security of AEK BC throughout the game, unlike the 3rd game of Jerusalem, where our team was defenseless against the moods of fanatical fans and other common thugs inside and outside the Hapoel administration.

AEK BC proved they know how to lose. He proved it in both the title period and the non-title period. However, he has no intention of laying down arms or remaining silent before the one and only truth. Hapoel, using the “Ovidian” expression “the end justifies the means”, has used all unholy methods all along, exerting pressure in all directions and circumventing every legal notion. On the contrary, we have chosen not to add fuel to the fire of polarization, even at the cost of our unfair and severe punishment by the FIBA ​​sports judge.

AEK BC announces that today (Friday 04/21) it will appeal against the first instance decision at the Court of Arbitration for Sports in Lausanne (CAS).

Finally, as for our reaction to the consequences of the damage caused in the second battle by provocateurs against our facilities in Ano Liosia, there will be announcements in the next period. What is certain is that groundbreaking decisions are a one-way street. In cooperation with the police, we are studying movements and actions in view of the new season to ensure that AEK’s true friends, families and children, and those who really love basketball and AEK, can come to our HOUSE”.