Houston Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair showed no remorse after a three-game suspension was upheld on Wednesday for his season-ending hit on Jacksonville Jaguars star quarterback Trevor Lawrence, posting an image of his “free” Palestine cleats that include statistics from the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.
“If you want me to be your villain, I’ll be your villain. See you soon,” he wrote, adding emojis of a middle finger and a Joker playing card.
Al-Shaair injured Lawrence’s shoulder and gave him a concussion after a tackle to the head while the quarterback was sliding during the Jaguars’ 23-20 loss on Sunday.
During the play, he was wearing custom cleats featuring the word “free” written in the colors of the Palestinian flag, a verse from the Quran and purported statistics about Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza.
“At least 41,788 Palestinians killed, 10,000+ estimated to be under the rubble, 96,794 wounded,” the message reads.
Those numbers correspond to casualty statistics that Hamas’s health ministry published on Oct. 3.
Al-Shaair, a Muslim, wore the shoes as part of the NFL’s “My Cause, My Cleats” charity program when during weeks 13 and 14, NFL players don customized cleats in honor of the causes they have chosen to support.
According to the Houston Texans website, proceeds, in this case, benefit the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund, a U.S.-based charity that runs Al-Rantisi Hospital in Gaza, named for a co-founder of Hamas and which the IDF alleged was used to hold hostages and host Hamas fighters.
