Hawzah News Agency- The Houston Texans linebacker wore them during the game Sunday against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
“FREE” was written in the colors of the Palestinian flag on the outside of the cleats, which represent the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund. The cleats were worn as part of the NFL’s “My Cause My Cleats” campaign.
Pro-Palestine activists often use the phrase “free Palestine” during demonstrations. The region has been rocked by fighting since the Israeli regime launched its genocidal war on the Gaza Strip in October 2023.
Chancellor Johnson, a sports anchor for the Houston-based TV station KPRC, reported last week that the inside of one of Al-Shaair's cleats bore the message "surely to Allah we belong and to him we will all return,” a sentence from the Holy Quran.
The other shoe reads “AT LEAST 41,788 Palestinians killed,” “96,794 wounded” and “10,000+ estimated to be under the rubble,” apparent references to war casualties in the Israeli war on Gaza, according to a screenshot of an Instagram post Al-Shaair apparently shared of the cleats.
Al-Shaair was ejected from Sunday's game after hitting Jacksonville quarterback Trevor Lawrence, who was sliding for a first down. Following the game, Al-Shaair posted a statement on social media addressing the hit.
“I genuinely didn’t see him sliding until it was too late. And it all happens in the blink of an eye,” he wrote.
The linebacker said he “genuinely” apologizes to Lawrence for “what ended up happening,” noting he would never want to see a player hurt for a hit of his that’s labeled “late” or “unnecessary.”
“I’ve always played the game as hard as I could. Never with the intent to harm anyone and anybody that knows me knows that,” the statement reads. “My goal is to hit you as hard as I can then I pray you’re still able to get up and play the next play. And when the game is over go home to your family unharmed because it’s not personal it’s just competition!”
Al-Shaair concluded by writing “God knows my intentions and anyone who has ever been a teammate or friend of mine knows my heart.”
