Palestinians cancel soccer final after Israel denies Gaza team travel

Palestinian players of Gaza soccer club Khadamat Rafah take off their boots after a training session in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip September 24, 2019. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa

GAZA (Reuters) - The Palestinian national soccer club championship was called off on Wednesday after Israel denied travel permits to Gaza players who had hoped to face off with their opponents in the occupied West Bank.

Israel refused to let players from Gaza's Khadamat Rafah club travel several dozen kilometres through its territory to play Nablus's FC Balata in the central West Bank.