Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola said he is “so scared” by the “painful” war in Gaza as he delivered an emotional speech.
It is 20 months since Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza in response to the unprecedented Hamas-led cross-border attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.
At least 54,880 people have been killed in Gaza since, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.
Guardiola, 54, was speaking as he received an honorary doctorate from the University of Manchester on Monday.
“It’s so painful what we see in Gaza. It hurts my whole body,” said Guardiola in clips of his speech shared on social media.
“Let me be clear, it’s not about ideology. It’s not about whether I’m right, or you’re wrong. It’s just about the love of life, about the care of your neighbour.
“Maybe we think that we see the boys and girls of four years old being killed by the bomb or being killed at the hospital because it’s not a hospital anymore. It’s not our business.
“We can think about that. It’s not our business. But be careful. The next one will be ours. The next four- or five-year-old kids will be ours. Sorry, but I see my kids, Maria, Marius and Valentina. When I see every morning since the nightmare started the infants in Gaza, and I’m so scared.”
