RAMALLAH, July 4 (JMCC) - The Palestinian team scraped by in its Sunday qualifying match against Afghanistan,
reports the Associated Press.
But the more important victory was playing their first qualifier on a home field in al-Ram.
One of the few FIFA members which is not a U.N. recognized state, the Palestinians face Thailand in the next round.
Palestinian defender Hasam Wadi scored in the 11th minute, before Balal Arezou equalized in the 63rd for Afghanistan.
The Palestinian team defeated Afghanistan 2-0 in the first leg of their World Cup qualifier, played in Tajikistan because of the security situation in Afghanistan.
[...]
The World Cup qualifier was the highest profile football match on Palestinian territory to date.
“This is the most important game ever in Palestine,” Palestinian Football Federation chief Jibril Rajoub said.
Rajoub is a former Palestinian security chief who spent 17 years in Israeli prisons. He left politics in 2006 and was appointed head of the Palestinian Football Federation and Olympic committee two years later.