title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: In 2014, FIFA appointed Michael Garcia as its independent ethics investigator to look into bribery allegations against Russia and Qatar, the hosts for the 2018 and 2022 World Cup respectively. Garcia investigated all nine bids and eleven countries involved in the 2018 and 2022 bids and spoke to all persons connected to the bids and appealed for witnesses to come forward with evidence. At the end of investigation, Garcia submitted a 430-page report in September 2015. FIFA governing body then appointed a German judge Hans Joachim Eckert who reviewed and presented a 42-page summary of the report two months later. The report cleared Qatar and Russia of bribery allegations stating that Qatar "pulled Aspire into the orbit of the bid in significant ways" but did not "compromise the integrity" of the overall bid process.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Michael Garcia reacted almost immediately stating that the report is “materially incomplete” and with “erroneous representations of the facts and conclusions". In 2017, a German journalist Peter Rossberg who claimed to have obtained the report wrote in a Facebook post that the report "does not provide the proof that the 2018 or 2022 World Cup was bought" and stated that he would publish the full report bit by bit. This forced FIFA to release the original report as authored by the investigator Michael Garcia. The full report did not provide any evidence of corruption against the host of 2022 World Cup but stated that bidders tested rules of conduct to the limit. The report ended talks of a re-vote.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: In January, Bonita Mersiades, a whistle-blower from inside Australia's 2022 World Cup bid published a book which alleges that in the months before the vote in December 2010, FIFA executives were privately worried that a Qatar win would leave a financial shortfall for the governing body in 2022 which Al Jazeera (now beIN Sports) agreed a secret deal to pay $100 million if Qatar won the vote. According to the book, the deal took place with the involvement and knowledge of Jérôme Valcke, secretary general of FIFA at the time who was later banned for nine years from football for corruption. "The Mail on Sunday" asked beIN Sports about the allegations, in which a spokesman characterised the bonus as "production contributions" which were "standard market practice and are often imposed upon broadcasters by sports federations and sports rights holders".


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: According to leaked documents obtained by "The Sunday Times", Qatari state-run television channel Al Jazeera secretly offered $400 million to FIFA, for broadcasting rights, just 21 days before FIFA announced that Qatar will hold the 2022 World Cup. The contract also documented a secret TV deal between FIFA and Qatar's state run media broadcast Al Jazeera that $100 million will also be paid into a designated FIFA account only if Qatar wins the World Cup ballot in 2010. An additional $480 million was also offered by the State of Qatar government, three years after the initial offer, which brings the amount to $880 million offered by Qatar to host the 2022 World Cup. The documents are now part of the bribery inquiry by Swiss Police.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: FIFA refused to comment on the inquiry and responded to "The Sunday Times" in an email and wrote "allegations linked to the FIFA World Cup 2022 bid have already been extensively commented by FIFA, who in June 2017 published the Garcia report in full on Fifa.com. Furthermore, please note that Fifa lodged a criminal complaint with the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland, which is still pending. FIFA is and will continue to cooperate with the authorities." A beIN spokesman said in a statement that the company would not "respond to unsubstantiated or wildly speculative allegations."


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Damian Collins, a British Member of Parliament (MP) and chairman of a UK parliamentary committee, called for payments from Al Jazeera to be frozen and launched an investigation into the apparent contract since the contract "appears to be in clear breach of the rules".


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Former UEFA president Michel Platini was arrested by French police on 18 June 2019 in relation to the rewarding of the 2022 World Cup to Qatar. He was detained at the Anti-Corruption Office of the Judicial Police outside Paris. The arrest represents the first substantial public move in an investigation into the Qatar decision opened two years ago by France's Parquet National Financier, which is responsible for law enforcement against serious financial crime.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: The notion of staging the tournament in winter proved controversial; Blatter ruled out a January or February event because it may clash with the 2022 Winter Olympics, while others expressed concerns over a November or December event, because it might clash with the Christmas season (even though Qatar is predominantly Muslim, the players in the tournament are predominantly Christian). The Premier League voiced concern over moving the tournament to the northern hemisphere's winter as it could interfere with the local leagues. FA Chairman Greg Dyke said, shortly after he took his job in 2013, that he was open to either a winter tournament or moving the tournament to another country. FIFA executive committee member Theo Zwanziger said that awarding the 2022 World Cup to Qatar's desert state was a "blatant mistake", and that any potential shift to a winter event would be unmanageable due to the effect on major European domestic leagues.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: In October 2013, a taskforce was commissioned to consider alternative dates, and report after the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. In early 2014, FIFA Secretary-General Jerome Valcke appeared to preempt this, saying: "Frankly, I think it will happen between November 15 and the end of December because that is when the weather is more favourable. It's more like springtime in Europe". This was controversial within FIFA itself, due to a possible conflict with the Christmas season, and Vice-president Jim Boyce responded in saying that "it absolutely has not been decided as far as the executive committee are concerned.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: It was agreed all the stakeholders should meet, all the stakeholders should have an input and then the decision would be made, and that decision as far as I understand will not be taken until the end of 2014 or the March executive meeting in 2015. As it stands it remains in the summer with no decision expected until end of 2014 or March 2015".


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Another option to combat heat problems was changing the date of the World Cup to the northern hemisphere's winter, when the climate in Qatar would be cooler. However, this proved just as problematic as doing so would disrupt the calendar of a number of domestic leagues, particularly in Europe.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Franz Beckenbauer, a member of FIFA's executive committee, said Qatar could be allowed to host the 2022 World Cup in winter. He justified his proposal on the grounds that Qatar would be saving money, which otherwise they would have spent in cooling the stadiums. Beckenbauer said: "One should think about another solution. In January and February you have comfortable there". "Qatar won the vote and deserves a fair chance as the first host from the Middle East". At a ceremony in Qatar marking the occasion of having been awarded the World Cup, FIFA President Sepp Blatter later agreed that this suggestion was plausible, but FIFA later clarified that any change from the bid position of a June–July games would be for the host association to propose. Beckenbauer would later receive a 90-day ban from any football-related activity from FIFA after refusing to cooperate in the investigation of bribery.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: The notion of holding the Cup during Europe's winter was further boosted by UEFA President Michel Platini's indicating that he was ready to rearrange the European club competitions accordingly. Platini's vote for the summer 2022 World Cup went to Qatar. FIFA President Sepp Blatter also said that despite air-conditioned stadiums the event was more than the games itself and involved other cultural events. In this regard, he questioned if fans and players could take part in the summer temperatures.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: In addition to objections by European leagues, Frank Lowy, chairman of Football Federation Australia, said a change of the 2022 World Cup date from summer to winter would upset the schedule of the A-League and said they would seek compensation from FIFA should the decision go ahead. Richard Scudamore, chief executive of the Premier League, stated that they would consider legal action against FIFA because a move would interfere with the Premier League's popular Christmas and New Year fixture programme.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: In September 2013, it was alleged that FIFA had held talks with broadcasters over the decision to change the date of the World Cup as it doing so could cause potential clashes with other scheduled television programming. The Fox Broadcasting Company who had paid $425 million for the right to broadcast both the 2018 and 2022 World Cups in the US, later voiced anger over the possible season switch, as doing so would clash with that year's NFL season, which takes place in the winter and with whom Fox also has a lucrative broadcasting deal. The network said they bought the rights with the understanding the tournament would take place in the summer, and if the change did go ahead they would seek compensation.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: In February 2015, FIFA awarded Fox the rights to the 2026 World Cup, without opening it up for bidding with ESPN, NBC, and other interested American broadcasters. Richard Sandomir of "The New York Times" reported that FIFA did so to avoid Fox from suing in U.S. courts, which under the American legal system could force FIFA to open up their books and expose any possible corruption. As BBC sports editor Dan Roan observed, "It does not seem to matter to FIFA that rival networks ESPN and NBC may have wanted to bid, or that more money could have been generated for the good of the sport had a proper auction been held. As ever, it seemed, FIFA was looking after itself".


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: On 24 February 2015, it was announced that a winter World Cup would go ahead in favour of the traditional summertime event. The event was scheduled to be held between November and December. Commentators noted the clash with the Christmas season was likely to cause disruption, whilst there was concern for how short the tournament was intended to be. It was also confirmed that the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations would be moved from January to June to prevent African players from having a relatively quick two-week turnaround, although the monsoonal rainy season in its host country Guinea starts about that time.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: As the World Cup usually occurs during the northern hemisphere's summer, the weather in Qatar was a concern with temperatures reaching more than . Two doctors from Qatar's Aspetar sports hospital in Doha who gave an interview in November 2010 to "Qatar Today" magazine said the climate would be an issue, stating that the region's climate would "affect performance levels from a health point of view" of professional athletes, specifically footballers, that "recovery times between games would be longer" than in a temperate climate and that, on the field of play, "more mistakes would be made". One of the doctors said that "total acclimation (to the Qatari climate) is impossible".


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: The inspection team for evaluating who would host the tournament said that Qatar was "high risk" due to the weather. FIFA President Sepp Blatter initially rejected the criticism, but in September 2013 said the FIFA executive committee would evaluate the feasibility of a winter event instead of a summer one.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: By some estimates, the World Cup is set to cost Qatar approximately US$220 billion (£184 billion). This is about 60 times the $3.5 billion that South Africa spent on the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Nicola Ritter, a German legal and financial analyst, told an investors' summit held in Munich that £107 billion would be spent on stadiums and facilities plus a further £31 billion on transport infrastructure. Ritter said £30 billion would be spent on building air-conditioned stadiums with £48 billion on training facilities and accommodation for players and fans. A further £28 billion will be spent on creating a new city called Lusail that will surround the stadium that will host the opening and final matches of the tournament.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: According to a report released in April 2013 by Merrill Lynch, the investment banking division of Bank of America, the organisers in Qatar have requested from FIFA to approve a smaller number of stadiums due to the growing costs. Bloomberg.com said that Qatar wishes to cut the number of venues to 8 or 9 from the 12 originally planned. A report released in December 2010 quoted FIFA President Sepp Blatter as stating that Qatar's neighbours could host some matches during the World Cup. However, no specific countries were named in the report. Blatter added that any such decision must be taken by Qatar first and then endorsed by FIFA's executive committee. Prince Ali bin Al Hussein of Jordan told the Australian Associated Press that holding games in Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, and possibly Saudi Arabia would help to accommodate the people of the region during the tournament.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: The head of the Qatar bid delegation stated that if Israel were to qualify, they would be able to compete in the World Cup despite Qatar not recognising the state of Israel. Israel ultimately were eliminated during FIFA World Cup qualification, and thus did not compete at the tournament in Qatar.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: After the Russian Federation's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, FIFA stated that matches would not be held in Russia, though Russia would still be able to continue its participation in World Cup qualifying, where it had reached Path B. Also in Path B were Poland, the Czech Republic and Sweden, all of which refused to play against Russia in any form (as did England, which had already qualified for the tournament).


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: On 27 February 2022, FIFA announced a number of sanctions impacting Russia's participation in international football. Russia was prohibited from hosting international competitions, and the national team had been ordered to play all home matches behind closed doors in neutral countries. They may not compete under the name, flag, or national anthem of Russia: similarly to the Russian athletes' participation in events such as the Olympics, the team would compete under the abbreviation of their national federation, the Russian Football Union ("RFU") rather than "Russia". The next day, FIFA decided to suspend Russia from international competitions "until further notice", including its participation in the 2022 FIFA World Cup. In July 2022, the Court of Arbitration for Sport dismissed the Russian appeals and upheld FIFA's and UEFA's decisions.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Some observers, while approving of the boycott of Russia, pointed out that FIFA did not boycott Saudi Arabia for its military intervention in Yemen, or Qatar for its human rights violations.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: At the time of being awarded the tournament in 2010, Qatar was ranked 113 in the world, and had never qualified for the World Cup before. The most prestigious accolade the team had won was the Arabian Gulf Cup twice, both times hosting. Since being awarded the tournament, they have also won the Arabian Gulf Cup for a third time in 2014 and the AFC Asian Cup in 2019. Qatar became the smallest country by land area to host the World Cup (less than half the size of 1954 hosts Switzerland). These facts led some to question the strength of football culture in Qatar and if that made them unsuitable World Cup hosts.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: The Qatar Football Association has also been known to naturalise players from foreign nations for its own team. Examples include Sebastián Soria, Luiz Júnior and Emerson Sheik. The Qatar FA has previously attempted to offer incentives to uncapped players of other nations to switch allegiance to the Gulf state. These have included the German-based Brazilian trio of Aílton, Dedé and Leandro in 2004 – none of whom have ever played in or have other connections to Qatar – to help their team qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. FIFA blocked the moves and as a result, tightened eligibility requirements for national teams.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: With a 2–0 loss to Ecuador on the tournament's opening day, Qatar became the first host nation to lose their opening match at the World Cup; Qatar subsequently lost 3–1 to Senegal in their second group match, becoming the first team to be eliminated from the tournament. They lost their final group game 2–0 to the Netherlands, becoming the first and only host to lose all their games.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Hassan Abdulla al Thawadi, chief executive of the Qatar 2022 World Cup bid, said the Muslim state would also permit alcohol consumption during the event. Specific fan-zones would be established where alcohol could be bought. Although expatriates may purchase alcohol and certain businesses may sell alcohol with a permit, drinking in public is not permitted as Qatar's legal system is based on Sharia.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: In February 2022, the communications executive director at the supreme committee, Fatma Al-Nuaimi, stated in an interview that alcohol would be available in designated fan zones outside stadiums and in other Qatari official hospitality venues. In July 2022, it was reported that while fans would be allowed to bring alcoholic beverages into the stadiums, alcoholic beverages would not be sold inside the stadiums. But according to a source, "the plans are still being finalised." However, on 18 November 2022, days before the first match, Qatar officially banned alcoholic beverages from sale within the eight stadiums.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: On 30 November 2022, "The Times" published an interview with some female fans attending FIFA World Cup 2022 games, with some of them saying that less drunkenness among other attendees made them feel safer at the stadiums than they expected.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: On 5 November 2022, Gianni Infantino and Fatma Samoura sent out a letter to all participating nations telling them to cease and avoid any further or current discussion of Qatar's poor human rights records to "respect all opinions and beliefs, without handing out moral lessons to the rest of the world" and to "focus on the football" as to "not allow football to be dragged into every ideological or political battle that exists". Notably, members of the UEFA Working Group such as Australia, Belgium, Denmark, England, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States were specifically targeted for their involvement in trying to improve the conditions for migrant workers, women, and LGBT people. All of the nations criticised the letter, stating "FIFA acknowledged in their letter that football does not operate in a vacuum, however they seem to be calling for that to be the case. History has shown us that the pursuit of such a strategy will be self-defeating and only further erodes football's social license to operate."


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: On 19 November 2022, Infantino gave an hour-long address to the media during a pre-tournament press conference, during which he defended FIFA's hosting of the tournament in Qatar, and commented upon pre-tournament developments such as the banning of alcohol. He opened by declaring that he "felt" Qatari, Arabic, African, gay, disabled, and like a migrant worker, because he understood how it felt to be discriminated. He argued that criticism of the treatment of migrant workers by Western critics was hypocritical because "for what we Europeans have been doing for 3,000 years around the world, we should be apologising for the next 3,000 years before starting to give moral lessons to people". Infantino argued that none of the European companies "who earn millions and millions from Qatar or other countries in the region" had taken steps to address the rights of migrant workers like FIFA had, and suggested that Europe needed to be more open to accepting refugees and migrant workers. He asked, "do we want to continue to spit on the others because they look different, or they feel different? We defend human rights. We do it our way. We obtain results. We got women fans in Iran. The Women's League was created in Sudan. Let’s celebrate. Don't divide." In response to a last-minute prohibition on the sale of alcohol inside the stadiums, Infantino stated that it was a decision made jointly by FIFA and the organising committee, but argued that FIFA was still in "200% control" of the event, prohibitions on the sale of alcohol at sporting events were not exclusive to Qatar, and joked that "if this is the biggest issue we have for the World Cup then I will resign immediately and go to the beach to relax". He once again argued that people should "focus on the football", and direct their criticism to FIFA and "me if you want" instead of Qatar.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: The speech drew further criticism: The Associated Press labeled the speech an "extraordinary diatribe" and a "tirade" while "The Guardian" called it "bizarre and incendiary". Infantino was accused of deflecting criticism of Qatar's human rights record. Amnesty International criticised Infantino for "brushing aside legitimate human rights criticisms", Sky Sports pundit Melissa Reddy accused Infantino of engaging in whataboutism, while FairSquare director Nicholas McGeehan described the remarks as being "as crass as they were clumsy", and feeling like "talking points directly from the Qatari authorities". Writing for "The Observer", Barney Ronay described the address as being "a wretched spectacle—not to mention myopic, tin-eared and oddly lost", and felt that Infantino was "clearly furious with his critics, furious that this thing cannot be bent to his will. And by the end it had become hugely engrossing just to see someone so blind to his own contortions, so shameless, and quite clearly losing his grip on his own spectacular."


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: In the weeks before the tournament began, singers Dua Lipa and Shakira announced that they had refused to perform at the opening ceremony and collaborate on the tournament anthem due to human rights violations implemented by the Emirate's internal policies. British singer Rod Stewart said he turned down a substantial offer to perform in the country: "They offered me a lot of money, more than a million dollars, to perform there [in Qatar]. I turned it down. It's not right to go there." In addition, the league's ambassador, David Beckham, was criticized by the LGBT community in the United Kingdom for lending his face to the event in exchange for $10 million. Talking about the fact former Spice Girls member Melanie C, arguing that it is "complex" for sports to change culture when so much money is involved. British singer Robbie Williams defended his choice to participate as a guest at the opening event, stating: "I don't condone any abuses of human rights anywhere. But, that being said, if we're not condoning human rights abuses anywhere, then it would be the shortest tour the world has ever known. [...] You get this microscope that goes 'okay, these are the baddies, and we need to rally against them'... I think that the hypocrisy there is that if we take that case in this place, we need to apply that unilaterally to the world. Then if we apply that unilaterally to the world, nobody can go anywhere".


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: After the announcement of the collaboration for the World Cup anthem "Tukoh Taka", performed by US rapper Nicki Minaj, Colombian singer Maluma, and Lebanese singer Myriam Fares, the three artists have been affected by a great deal of controversy for choosing to be paid to sing a song in an Emirate whose internal policies involve the violation of human rights, women's rights, LGBT rights, as well as the support of slavery and child exploitation. Singer Maluma replied to the charge by declaring: "it’s something I can’t resolve; [...] It’s not something that I actually have to be involved with. I’m here enjoying my music and the beautiful life, playing soccer too".


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: American actor Morgan Freeman was criticised on social media by media outlets for participating in the tournament's opening ceremony, with references made to his acting performance as Nelson Mandela in the dedicated film "Invictus" (2009). During Freeman's monologue, numerous spectators left the stadium in protest.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: In October 2022, calls were made to ban the Iranian national team from the World Cup for the Iranian government's blocking of Iranian women from their stadiums, their supplying of weapons to Russia during the invasion of Ukraine, and the treatment towards protesters during the Mahsa Amini protests.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Since the 1979 Iranian Revolution, the presence of Iranian women in Iranian stadiums had been illegal until October 2019 after the death of Sahar Khodayari, when select Iranian women were allowed to enter the stadium after 40 years for a World Cup qualifier. However, in March 2022, Iranian women were again banned from entering the stadium for a World Cup qualifier, with authorities using pepper spray to disperse them.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Former Iranian national team goalkeeper Sosha Makani called on fans to either boycott the event or create slogans and chants that highlight the Iranian government's involvement of the deaths of protestors Nika Shakarami, Hadis Najafi, Asra Panahi and Sarina Esmailzadeh to prevent the government from using footage of them in the stands as propaganda, while ex-wrestling champion Sardar Pashaei called for a full ban of the national team until the government steps down.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: In early November 2022, the Welsh government stated they would boycott the Group B Wales vs Iran match due to the protests in Iran.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Ahead of the country's opening game (Group B England vs Iran match), many Iranians boycotted their team as they felt it was representing the government. Ahead of that opening game against England, the Iranian team refused to sing the national anthem in solidarity with the Mahsa Amini protests, with some Iranian supporters cheering against their own team or boycotting their team as a result.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: In the following match against Wales, amidst the boos and whistles from the Iranian supporters during the playing of the national anthem, the Iranian players were filmed singing the national anthem, with some protestors having their pre-revolutionary Lion and Sun flags and Women, Life, Freedom banners snatched from them by pro-government fans and stadium security at the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium. Security guards at the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium seized a flag with the inscription "Woman. Freedom. Life" from an Iranian fan before the Group B game between Iran and Wales. Reuters reported on several incidents involving Iranian fans at this game, including a man wearing a shirt emblazoned with the words "Women, Life, Freedom" being escorted by three security officers into the ground, but was unable to confirm why he was being given a security escort, as well as a Reuters photograph which showed a woman whose face was painted with dark red tears holding a shirt in the air with "Mahsa Amini - 22" on it. Another Iranian fan told Reuters that her friends had been prevented from entering the stadium due to their efforts to bring t-shirts reading "Women Life Freedom" but that she had managed to get one t-shirt through the security blanket outside the stadium. Protesters were harassed by government supporters with some protesters being detained by Qatari police, while stadium security confirmed they were given orders to confiscate anything but the flag of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Protesters against the regime covered the lenses of security cameras with sanitary pads. One Iranian fan said Qatari police insisted she wash away the markings on her arms and chest, which commemorated those who had been killed by Iranian security forces. Documents obtained by Iran International showed Iran was coordinating secret efforts with Qatar to control who attends the World Cup and restrict any signs of dissent.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Prior to what would be Iran's final fixture (Group B Iran vs United States match), Iran's state-run media called for the US team to be expelled from the tournament after the US Soccer Federation removed the Islamic Republic emblem from Iran's flag in a social media post. The US Federation confirmed it had done so to show support for Iranian protesters before deleting the post. FIFA did not comment on the issue.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Ahead of that concluding fixture against the United States, the Iranian players were reportedly called in to a meeting with members of the IRGC and threatened with violence and the torture of their families if they did not sing the national anthem or joined the protests against the Iranian regime. During the match, the Iranian players sang the national anthem again before losing to the United States 1–0 for the first time in their history, thereby being knocked out of the tournament. Many Iranians celebrated the defeat and one Iranian man was killed by security forces in Bandar-e Anzali after honking his car horn in celebration. Another Iranian fan was arrested by Qatari police after he was wearing a shirt with the Woman, Life, Freedom slogan.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: It was reported that Qatar went back on its word to provide cooked "kosher" food and public Jewish prayer services at the 2022 World Cup, banning both activities. Qatar alleged that they could not "secure" the safety of publicly praying Jewish tourists, whilst many foreign Jews complained that they subsequently had no food available to eat. It was estimated that 10,000 religious Jews from Israel and many more Jewish-Americans arrived to watch the World Cup in Qatar.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Multiple Israeli reporters at the tournament reported fans from Arab nations waving Palestinian flags and chanting anti-Israeli slogans. Some Israelis reported that they had been escorted out of restaurants when their nationality was revealed. The Israeli government warned its citizens who are travelling to the tournament to hide their Israeli identity out of safety concerns. Moav Vardi of KAN TV said almost everyday Arabs here say us, "You are not welcome here, there is only Palestine, there is no such thing as Israel, Israel does not exist", some just turn back when they tell they're Jewish. Some taunted and yelled at them. Muslims and Morocco football team players waved, raised Palestine flags during matches in stadiums.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: In 2020, Qatar began a fan engagement program promising to pay air travel, entrance tickets to matches, housing and even spending money for groups of fans from all competing nations. However, fans who are handpicked by the Qatari government are required to sing and chant when asked to, and are required to report any social media posts which are critical of Qatar. Many fans reportedly declined the offer. On 18 November 2022, it was reported that Qatar had cancelled the daily spending allowances for fans who were paid to attend the World Cup.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Days prior to the start of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Qatar was accused of reportedly having paid actors to play the role of fans at the tournament in order to promote the country. Qatar was similarly accused of having paid for supporters when it hosted the 2015 World Men's Handball Championship.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: During the World Cup, Nejmeh SC ultras from Lebanon were employed by the Qatari government to act as Qatar national team fans during their games. The 1,500 "adopted" ultras wore maroon t-shirts with "Qatar" stamped on front, sang the Qatari national anthem and beat drums while singing chants.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: In the days leading up to the tournament, videos emerged of the tournament accommodation, which consisted of shipping containers, some with a curtain leading to the exterior instead of four solid walls, and portable air conditioners. This accommodation cost over $200 a night. A Greek salad which costs $10, consisting of a small amount of lettuce, one slice of cucumber, and no feta, served in a foam container was criticized as expensive and unpalatable. These criticisms led to comparisons to the ill-fated Fyre Festival. Alcohol, where available, is expensive, with beer being $13.73 for 500ml.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: One official fan village, comprising hundreds of shipping containers, still resembled a building site less than two days before the first World Cup match. People who had stayed in another village complained about the air conditioning and beds: "It has been hell. The air con in the cabin barely works and sounds like a [fighter jet] is taking off... [The beds] are rock hard so you might as well sleep on the floor."


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Due to these issues, which Qatar officials say were caused by "owner and operator negligence", Qatar offered refunds to fans "severely impacted" by the issues.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Though not connected to any protest against Iran, the official Wales brass band had their instruments confiscated before the Group B Wales vs Iran match. The brass band had been allowed to play at the previous Wales match (against the United States) and FIFA officially supported their attendance at the tournament.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Many England supporters missed the start of the Group B England vs Iran match due to problems with FIFA's ticketing app. That day also, the FIFA app caused tickets belonging to fans of the United States team to disappear.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: There were problems also with ticketing, first before, and then during, throughout, the Round of 16 Morocco vs Spain match on 6 December, including with FIFA's ticketing app.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Prior to the tournament, there were several reported incidents of altercations between broadcasters and Qatari security officials. Rasmus Tantholdt of Denmark's TV 2 was interrupted by a group of security guards during a live broadcast from Katara, who threatened him and attempted to break their camera. Tantholdt responded to the group, saying "You have invited the whole world here. Why can't we film? It is a public place." Organisers apologised for the incident, claiming that it was a mistake.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: RTÉ journalist Tony O'Donoghue accused Qatari police of stopping him during efforts to film in the country on 17 November.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Dominique Metzger, a reporter from Argentina, had a wallet and important documents stolen from a bag during a live TV broadcast.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: With the tournament underway, television presenter Joaquín 'El Pollo' Alvarez (from Argentina) was interrupted by Qatari forces when he was in the middle of a live television broadcast outdoors in Barwa Village, a complex in Doha designed specifically for Qatar's hosting of the tournament. Alvarez was interviewing an older supporter who was sitting in her wheelchair. He had to stop when asked if he was an accredited media representative and, with the help of a colleague, search for a press pass in his bag. But then an official became irritated and ordered the cameraman to stop filming, insisting that the outdoor street was "private". Alvarez said he had been threatened with arrest ("I was frightened and thought they were going to take me prisoner... It's impossible to work and enjoy a World Cup like this"). The film crew were threatened also with the destruction of their equipment. Nicolas Magali, who was co-hosting the live broadcast from the TV studio in Argentina's capital Buenos Aires, told viewers: "This is an example of severe censorship and we have to say so. They covered up the camera, didn't let us film, ordered you away in a rude fashion and on top of that the person doing the talking didn't identify himself".


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: American soccer journalist Grant Wahl collapsed and died while covering the Netherlands vs. Argentina match in the early morning of 10 December 2022.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Wahl had experienced cold-like symptoms in the days prior, but felt better following a course of treatment from the World Cup medical centre. An outspoken critic of Qatar's selection as World Cup host, Wahl had been briefly detained while wearing a t-shirt depicting a rainbow at an earlier game during the tournament (United States vs Wales). Wahl reportedly received death threats for wearing the shirt, and his brother said he believes Wahl's death was the result of foul play, implicating the Qatari government as playing a role. Other journalists with Wahl at the time of his death have reported that he did not collapse but instead began fitting or experiencing a seizure, and called for help himself. They have criticised the Qatar Supreme Committee for not providing defibrillators in the stadium, as they had looked for one to try to help Wahl. In response, FIFA said that according to the ambulance service, a defibrillator was made available when paramedics later arrived on scene. An autopsy done on Wahl in New York City later revealed that Wahl died from an aortic aneurysm rupture. Grant Wahl's brother later backtracked on his statement on the cause of his brother's death and stated he no longer suspects foul play.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Khalid al-Misslam, a 43-year old photojournalist for the Qatari channel Alkass TV, died while covering the 2022 World Cup on 11 December 2022. The news of the death was reported by the "Gulf Times", without mentioning the cause of his death. Other media pointed out that the death had been "sudden", without giving further details of the causes. International Sports Press Association (AIPS) later confirmed he was not working at the time of his death and he reportedly died of a heart attack.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: CCTV, the state broadcaster and the official broadcaster of FIFA World Cup in mainland China, replaced footage of maskless audiences with close-ups of coaches, officials or players, or birds-eye view of stadiums in its broadcast, as scenes of maskless audiences fueled unrest with China's zero-COVID policy during ongoing protests. Following the protests, the Chinese government began to relax pandemic control measures and more images of audience without masks appeared on live telecast.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: After the Group F Belgium vs Morocco match, state-run TV2 of Algeria completely omitted the existence of the Morocco match, due to tensions between Algeria and Morocco. After Morocco defeated Spain in the Round of 16, Algeria's state TV channel and the Algeria Press Service never mentioned Morocco's victory, although many Algerians celebrated for Morocco.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Although the reason has not been revealed, a few hours after the result of Morocco defeated Portugal in the quarter-final was shown on TV3, the director general of Public Establishment of Television, Chabane Lounakel was dismissed by the Algerian government.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Middle East Eye, a web news portal understood to be funded and operated by Qatar, though the nation denies this, has described several Western media publications as racist, and criticised the nations from which they originate. It highlighted the French satirical newspaper "Le Canard enchaîné", which published a cartoon of bearded men wearing Qatar football jerseys holding knives, guns, and rocket launchers; and the German television network Welt, on which a presenter described the Tawhid Islamic salute performed by Moroccan players after they defeated Portugal as "the signature hand gesture of members of ISIS".


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: In other news of Welt, former footballer Jimmy Hartwig used the word "Ching Chang Chong" and made a bow as typical Japanese do to describe the Japanese squad, and also called Japan "Reisabteilung", which means "rice department". After this, he was criticized for discrimination against Asians especially among Japanese people in Germany.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: E-newsletter "Morocco World News" criticised Danish television network TV 2, which it said was racist for a panel of presenters comparing the way Moroccan players reached over spectators to embrace their mothers to monkeys huddling, while the blog site "Al Bawaba" saw someone post criticism of Dutch newspaper "de Volkskrant" for printing on the day of their semi-final, a cartoon of Morocco players with shaved heads taking the World Cup trophy from Infantino.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Tromsø IL of Norway released a statement calling for a boycott of the 2022 World Cup, in relation to reports of "modern-day slavery" and the "alarming number of deaths", among additional concerns in their statement. The club urged the Norwegian Football Federation to support such a boycott.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: In reaction to the 2017 Qatar diplomatic crisis, Reinhard Grindel, the president of the German Football Association, stated in June 2017 that "the football associations of the world should conclude that major tournaments cannot be held in countries with human rights abuses and that the German Football Association would talk with UEFA and the Cabinet of Germany in order to evaluate whether to boycott the tournament in Qatar in 2022. On 26 March 2021, the German Football Association stated that it was opposed to boycotting the tournament but that its players will campaign for improvement of human rights for all. On the same day, Belgium manager Roberto Martínez told CNN that it would be a "big mistake" to boycott the event.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: On 20 June 2021, a congress of the Norwegian Football Federation decided against a boycott of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: On 20 October 2021, the German Football Association (DFB) published an interview on its website that confirmed that Germany would not boycott the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. According to vice-president Peter Peters, "Qatar has seen many positive developments in the past few years, and it is football's role to support those developments."


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: On 27 March 2022, the Fourth High-Level Strategic Dialogue between the State of Qatar and the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT) took place where the Gulf nation extended its donation to three more years. According to the recent report of UNOCT, Qatar remained the second-largest donor in the campaign amongst 35 other donors.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: In October 2022, it was announced Paris had joined other French cities in boycotting the broadcasting of the 2022 tournament amid concerns over rights violations of migrant workers and the environmental impact of the tournament.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: In November 2022, fans of Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich, and Hertha Berlin unveiled banners calling for a boycott of the Qatar World Cup.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Cologne-based supermarket chain REWE cut all ties with the German Football Association (DFB) with immediate effect on 23 November as the company's CEO Lionel Souque moved to disassociate them from the sport, calling FIFA's actions in the early days of the tournament "scandalous", and even electing to waive its pre-existing advertising rights.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Shortly after the Group G Brazil vs Serbia match on 24 November, a flag showing Kosovo as being part of Serbia with words "" () was seen hanging in Serbia's locker room. The Football Association of Kosovo sued the Football Association of Serbia and urged FIFA to open an investigation. On 26 November 2022, FIFA opened proceedings against the Football Association of Serbia due on the basis of article 11 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code and article 4 of the Regulations for the FIFA World Cup 2022. The Football Association of Serbia was subsequently fined 20,000 Swiss francs by FIFA on 7 December.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: During the Group G Serbia vs Switzerland match on 2 December, midfielder Granit Xhaka twice rattled the entire Serbian team. First, in the 65th minute, Xhaka grabbed his crotch in the direction of Serbian players, causing the entire Serbian bench to angrily respond to him and Serbian reserve goalkeeper Predrag Rajković being booked (i.e. given a yellow card). Second, at the end of the match, Xhaka got into a fight against Nikola Milenković for his chants against Serbians, with both players going into the referee's book.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Many Serbian fans displayed slogans and attire related to fascism and the Yugoslav Wars, such as "Serbia to Tokyo", and made racist chants and gestures toward Albanians during the second half of the game. Between the two incidents between Xhaka and the Serbian players, FIFA issued a public address in the 77th minute of the game asking for "discriminatory chants and gestures" to stop. Also, according to a Kosovo Albanian fan, his Albanian flag around his neck was confiscated at the entrance before the game. Another fan was escorted out of the game by members of security after doing the Albanian double-headed eagle celebration.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Furthermore, Xhaka, an ethnic Albanian, enraged Serbian fans by wearing a jersey with the surname of Jashari written on it while celebrating after winning the match. Despite his claims that he wore the jersey to show support to his young Switzerland teammate Ardon Jashari, Serbian fans and media interpreted the move as glorification of Adem Jashari, a Kosovo Albanian soldier who founded the Kosovo Liberation Army during the Kosovo War, and who is seen as a national hero amongst Albanians but as a terrorist amongst Serbs.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: FIFA later opened a disciplinary proceeding against Serbia over the breach of three of FIFA's articles, including misconduct of players, discrimination, and order and security at matches.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Xenophobic chants were reported during the course of the Group F Croatia vs Canada match on 27 November. During the match, Croatian fans chanted xenophobic anti-Serb slogans against Canadian goalkeeper Milan Borjan, an ethnic Serb who was born in Croatia and fled the country during the Croatian War of Independence. They also displayed a modified John Deere banner making a reference to Operation Storm, a military operation that ended the war and abolished the Republic of Serbian Krajina, which resulted in a mass exodus, and war crimes against number of Serb civillians. Serbs generally consider it an act of ethnic cleansing despite the 2012 ICTY verdict ruling that: "there had been no "joint criminal enterprise", or conspiracy, to force out the Serbs from the Krajina region."


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: The incident was also preceded by Borjan's statement that he was born in "Serbian Dalmatia" which Croatians considered a provocation.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: FIFA opened a disciplinary measure against Croatia over these incidents after the Canadian Soccer Association filed a complaint. On 7 December, the Croatian Football Federation was fined 50,000 Swiss francs due to violating article 16 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: A pitch invader, carrying a rainbow flag and wearing a shirt with the words “RESPECT FOR IRANIAN WOMAN” written on the back and “SAVE UKRAINE” written on the front, interrupted the Group H Portugal vs Uruguay match on 28 November.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Another person interrupted the Group D Tunisia vs France match on 30 November by running into the pitch carrying a Palestinian flag.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Spanish referee Antonio Mateu Lahoz officiated the second quarter-final, held on 9 December, a game between the Netherlands and Argentina. Mateu Lahoz's decision-making throughout this game was called into question by many of those involved, as well as by neutral observers. BBC presenter Gary Lineker at one point during the game commented: "13 yellow cards. This referee has always loved to be the centre of attention. Makes Mike Dean seem shy." Ultimately, Lahoz produced a FIFA World Cup record of 18 yellow cards, including to people who were sitting on the bench and thus not involved in the game. After the end of the game, Lahoz issued a red card to Netherlands player Denzel Dumfries, however no TV commentator picked up on this, leaving viewers who checked the match reports afterwards puzzled. During the extra time period (which resulted from Netherlands striker Wout Weghorst scoring an equalising goal with the last kick of normal time, which itself went on for ten minutes extra due to the number of stoppages), BBC commentator Martin Keown remarked: "I think the referee is losing the plot here."


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Earlier, and with Argentina giving up a two-goal lead to leave the score at 2–1, Argentina's Leandro Paredes fouled his opponent Nathan Aké. Paredes responded to the referee's whistle by taking his foot to the ball and blasting it at the bench on which staff and players from the Netherlands were seated. Staff and players from the Netherlands all poured onto the pitch in anger, followed by staff and players from Argentina, sparking an on-pitch brawl featuring players and substitutes. Netherlands captain Virgil van Dijk was seen to charge forward and knock Paredes to the ground. Given the general confusion surrounding the game's total of yellow cards and the contradictions when various match reports are viewed, it is unclear how many players Lahoz booked in this one incident.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: After the game Lionel Messi asked FIFA to get rid of Lahoz. Messi also criticised the Netherlands manager: "Louis van Gaal says they play good football, but what he did was put tall people and spam long balls" and blamed Lahoz for causing the game to go on longer than it should have: "The referee sent us into extra time". The referee's decision not to show the yellow card to Messi for a deliberate handball also attracted comment, though Messi was eventually booked in the 10th minute of injury time at the end of the second half, at which point he would have been sent off with a red card if he had been booked for the earlier foul. Argentina's goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez described Lahoz as "crazy, the worst referee of the tournament, he is arrogant. You say something to him and he talks back to you badly. I think since Spain went out [to Morocco in the Round of 16<nowiki>]</nowiki> he wanted us to go out as well".


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Before Argentine player Lautaro Martínez started walking towards kicking his penalty shot, several Dutch players started surrounding him, in an attempt to intimidate him, even though the player is supposed to go alone to kick the shot. He would later go on to score Argentina's decisive shot, that qualified them to the semifinals. Inmediately following the penalty shootout victory, several Argentina players goaded the losing Netherlands players, e.g. Nicolás Otamendi raised his hands behind his ears, Leandro Paredes and Gonzalo Montiel gestured directly at them, while Alexis Mac Allister, Germán Pezzella and Ángel Di María screamed at their beaten opponents, an action harshly shunned by foreign commentators. However, the next day, an overhead camera recorded the incident between Martinez and the Dutch players.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Messi, while giving a post-match interview, said to Wout Weghorst: "What you looking at, fool? Get away, get back there."


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: In the Group E Japan vs Spain match, on 1 December, Japan midfielder Ao Tanaka scored a controversial goal (his team's second), the ball ending up in Unai Simón's net shortly after it seemed to have gone out of play. After a lengthy delay the goal was eventually awarded by VAR. The decision proved critical in both Japan's surprise topping of Group E and the elimination of Germany from the tournament, with "Die Mannschaft" finishing third despite securing a two-goal victory over Costa Rica in the group's other game. An image was later released showing that the ball had not fully crossed the line, by the narrowest of margins. Qatari-owned network beIN Sports showed a virtual bird's eye view of the ball: the section of the ball which was in contact with the pitch was outside the field of play, but its curvature meant the side of the ball was still marginally over the line. Spain's coach Luis Enrique claimed that the image had been "manipulated". On December 3, FIFA finally released video and images to provide an official explanation to the effect that the VAR decision was correct.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Viewers tuning in to French television for the Group D Tunisia vs France match on 30 November missed that the French team had lost the game 1–0. TF1 switched to an ad after Antoine Griezmann had seemingly levelled the game late in stoppage time, causing French viewers to miss the pitchside monitor consultation that led VAR to rule that Griezmann had been offside. The goal was chalked off. French football supporters awoke in shock the following morning to belatedly discover that the game had not ended in a tie at all, but in a surprise defeat for the reigning world champions. The incident brought to mind the time British broadcaster ITV cut for an ad break and viewers missed Steven Gerrard scoring England's opening goal at the 2010 FIFA World Cup.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: The first goal scored in the quarter-final between England and France – by Aurélien Tchouaméni for France in the 17th minute – was questioned by some of the British pundits due to England player Bukayo Saka being taken to the ground in order for France to win possession in the build-up to the goal. While some of the pundits thought it was a clear foul during the attacking phase, others thought that the contact was not clear enough for VAR to overturn the on-pitch decision, a view with which some British journalists disagreed.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Following the Group F Belgium vs Morocco match, in which Morocco unexpectedly defeated Belgium on 27 November, Moroccan fans began to riot in the Belgian cities of Brussels, Antwerp and Liege, and in the Dutch cities of Rotterdam, Amsterdam, and The Hague. At least twelve people were detained and two police officers were injured. Riot police attempted to break up a group of 500 football supporters in Rotterdam while media reported unrest in Amsterdam and The Hague.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Following the semifinal match between Morocco and France, clashes erupted between Moroccan and French fans in several French cities, with one 14-year-old boy being killed in Montpellier. Meanwhile in the Netherlands, 14 Moroccan fans were arrested in the city of Rotterdam amidst the unrest, while Dutch officials opted against public screenings of the game due to the previous unrest from the Morocco vs Belgium match.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: The Group H Ghana vs Uruguay match on 2 December finished in a 2–0 victory for Uruguay; however, Uruguay failed to progress from the group. After the final whistle, several Uruguayan players confronted the referee and other FIFA officials over what they deemed as controversial decisions during the course of the game, and while walking down the tunnel towards the dressing rooms, Edinson Cavani pushed over the VAR monitor. FIFA notified the Uruguayan association that an investigation was underway on the insults and treatment that Cavani, José María Giménez and Luis Suárez allegedly gave to said FIFA officials, sparking fears of severe punishments similar to the one that Suárez received in 2014 after biting an opponent.


title: 2022 FIFA World Cup controversies

text: Following the Group G Cameroon vs Brazil match on 2 December, Samuel Eto'o assaulted a man outside Stadium 974. A video circulated on social media of the former Cameroon international and Barcelona player, who was Cameroonian Football Federation president, attacking the man. Eto'o said himself, in a statement issued later that week, that it was a "violent altercation", that it was "an unfortunate incident" and that his victim was "probably" a fan of Algeria.


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: The parable of the blind men and an elephant is a story of a group of blind men who have never come across an elephant before and who learn and imagine what the elephant is like by touching it. Each blind man feels a different part of the elephant's body, but only one part, such as the side or the tusk. They then describe the elephant based on their limited experience and their descriptions of the elephant are different from each other. In some versions, they come to suspect that the other person is dishonest and they come to blows. The moral of the parable is that humans have a tendency to claim absolute truth based on their limited, subjective experience as they ignore other people's limited, subjective experiences which may be equally true. The parable originated in the ancient Indian subcontinent, from where it has been widely diffused.


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: The Buddhist text "Tittha Sutta, Udāna 6.4, Khuddaka Nikaya", contains one of the earliest versions of the story. The Tittha sutta is dated to around BCE, during the lifetime of the Buddha.


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: An alternative version of the parable describes sighted men, experiencing a large statue on a dark night, or feeling a large object while being blindfolded. They then describe what it is they have experienced. In its various versions, it is a parable that has crossed between many religious traditions and is part of Jain, Hindu and Buddhist texts of 1st millennium CE or before. The story also appears in 2nd millennium Sufi and Baháʼí Faith lore. The tale later became well known in Europe, with 19th century American poet John Godfrey Saxe creating as a poem, with a final verse that explains that the elephant is a metaphor for God, and the various blind men represent religions that disagree on something no one has fully experienced. The story has been published in many books for adults and children, and interpreted in a variety of ways.


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: The earliest versions of the parable of blind men and elephant is found in Buddhist, Hindu and Jain texts, as they discuss the limits of perception and the importance of complete context. The parable has several Indian variations, but broadly goes as follows:


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: In some versions, the blind men then discover their disagreements, suspect the others to be not telling the truth and come to blows. The stories also differ primarily in how the elephant's body parts are described, how violent the conflict becomes and how (or if) the conflict among the men and their perspectives is resolved. In some versions, they stop talking, start listening and collaborate to "see" the full elephant. In another, a sighted man enters the parable and describes the entire elephant from various perspectives, the blind men then learn that they were all partially correct and partially wrong. While one's subjective experience is true, it may not be the totality of truth.


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: The parable has been used to illustrate a range of truths and fallacies; broadly, the parable implies that one's subjective experience can be true, but that such experience is inherently limited by its failure to account for other truths or a totality of truth. At various times the parable has provided insight into the relativism, opaqueness or inexpressible nature of truth, the behavior of experts in fields of contradicting theories, the need for deeper understanding, and respect for different perspectives on the same object of observation. In this respect, it provides an easily understood and practical example that illustrates ontologic reasoning. That is, simply put, what things exist, what is their true nature, and how can their relations to each other be accurately categorized? For example, is the elephant's trunk a snake, or its legs trees, just because they share some similarities with those? Or is that just a misapprehension that differs from an underlying reality? And how should human beings treat each other as they strive to understand better (anger, respect, tolerance or intolerance)?


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: The "Rigveda", dated to have been composed between 1500 and 1200 BCE, states "Reality is one, though wise men speak of it variously." According to Paul J. Griffiths, this premise is the foundation of universalist perspective behind the parable of the blind men and an elephant. The hymn asserts that the same reality is subject to interpretations and described in various ways by the wise. In the oldest version, four blind men walk into a forest where they meet an elephant. In this version, they do not fight with each other, but conclude that they each must have perceived a different beast although they experienced the same elephant. The expanded version of the parable occurs in various ancient and Hindu texts. Many scholars refer to it as a Hindu parable.


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: The parable or references appear in "bhasya" (commentaries, secondary literature) in the Hindu traditions. For example, Adi Shankara mentions it in his "bhasya" on verse 5.18.1 of the "Chandogya Upanishad" as follows:


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: The medieval era Jain texts explain the concepts of "anekāntavāda" (or "many-sidedness") and "syādvāda" ("conditioned viewpoints") with the parable of the blind men and an elephant ("Andhgajanyāyah"), which addresses the manifold nature of truth. This parable is found in the most ancient Jain agams before 5th century BCE. Its popularity remained till late. For example, this parable is found in "Tattvarthaslokavatika" of Vidyanandi (9th century) and "Syādvādamanjari" of Ācārya Mallisena (13th century). Mallisena uses the parable to argue that immature people deny various aspects of truth; deluded by the aspects they "do" understand, they deny the aspects they "don't" understand. "Due to extreme delusion produced on account of a partial viewpoint, the immature deny one aspect and try to establish another. This is the maxim of the blind (men) and the elephant." Mallisena also cites the parable when noting the importance of considering all viewpoints in obtaining a full picture of reality. "It is impossible to properly understand an entity consisting of infinite properties without the method of modal description consisting of all viewpoints, since it will otherwise lead to a situation of seizing mere sprouts (i.e., a superficial, inadequate cognition), on the maxim of the blind (men) and the elephant."


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: The Buddha twice uses the simile of blind men led astray. The earliest known version occurs in the text "Tittha sutta".


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: In the "Canki Sutta" he describes a row of blind men holding on to each other as an example of those who follow an old text that has passed down from generation to generation. In the Udana (68–69) he uses the elephant parable to describe sectarian quarrels. A king has the blind men of the capital brought to the palace, where an elephant is brought in and they are asked to describe it.


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: When the blind men had each felt a part of the elephant, the king went to each of them and said to each: "Well, blind man, have you seen the elephant? Tell me, what sort of thing is an elephant?"


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: The men assert the elephant is either like a pot (the blind man who felt the elephant's head), a winnowing basket (ear), a plowshare (tusk), a plow (trunk), a granary (body), a pillar (foot), a mortar (back), a pestle (tail) or a brush (tip of the tail).


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: The men cannot agree with one another and come to blows over the question of what it is like and their dispute delights the king. The Buddha ends the story by comparing the blind men to preachers and scholars who are blind and ignorant and hold to their own views: "Just so are these preachers and scholars holding various views blind and unseeing... In their ignorance they are by nature quarrelsome, wrangling, and disputatious, each maintaining reality is thus and thus." The Buddha then speaks the following verse:


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: The Persian Sufi poet Sanai (1080–1131/1141 CE) of Ghazni (currently, Afghanistan) presented this teaching story in his "The Walled Garden of Truth".


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: Rumi, the 13th Century Persian poet and teacher of Sufism, included it in his Masnavi. In his retelling, "The Elephant in the Dark", some Hindus bring an elephant to be exhibited in a dark room. A number of men touch and feel the elephant in the dark and, depending upon where they touch it, they believe the elephant to be like a water spout (trunk), a fan (ear), a pillar (leg) and a throne (back). Rumi uses this story as an example of the limits of individual perception:


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: The sensual eye is just like the palm of the hand. The palm has not the means of covering the whole of the beast.


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: The eye of the Sea is one thing and the foam another. Let the foam go, and gaze with the eye of the Sea. Day and night foam-flecks are flung from the sea: oh amazing! You behold the foam but not the Sea. We are like boats dashing together; our eyes are darkened, yet we are in clear water.


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: Rumi ends his poem by stating "If each had a candle and they went in together the differences would disappear."


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: One of the most famous versions of the 19th century was the poem "" by John Godfrey Saxe (1816–1887).


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: Each in his own opinion concludes that the elephant is like a wall, snake, spear, tree, fan or rope, depending upon where they had touched. Their heated debate comes short of physical violence, but the conflict is never resolved.


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: In Japanese, the proverb is used as a simile of circumstance that ordinary men often fail to understand a great man or his great work.


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: The story is seen as a metaphor in many disciplines, being pressed into service as an analogy in fields well beyond the traditional. In physics, it has been seen as an analogy for the wave–particle duality. In biology, the way the blind men hold onto different parts of the elephant has been seen as a good analogy for the polyclonal B cell response.


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: The fable is one of a number of tales that cast light on the response of hearers or readers to the story itself. Idries Shah has commented on this element of self-reference in the many interpretations of the story, and its function as a teaching story:


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: ...people address themselves to this story in one or more [...] interpretations. They then accept or reject them. Now they can feel happy; they have arrived at an opinion about the matter. According to their conditioning they produce the answer. Now look at their answers. Some will say that this is a fascinating and touching allegory of the presence of God. Others will say that it is showing people how stupid mankind can be. Some say it is anti-scholastic. Others that it is just a tale copied by Rumi from Sanai – and so on.


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: Shah adapted the tale in his book "The Dermis Probe". This version begins with a conference of scientists, from different fields of expertise, presenting their conflicting conclusions on the material upon which a camera is focused. As the camera slowly zooms out it gradually becomes clear that the material under examination is the hide of an African elephant. The words 'The Parts Are Greater Than The Whole' then appear on the screen. This retelling formed the script for a short four-minute film by the animator Richard Williams. The film was chosen as an Outstanding Film of the Year and was exhibited at the London and New York film festivals.


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: The Russian preface to a collection of Lewis Carroll's works (including such books as "A Tangled Tale") includes the story as an analogy to the impression one gets from reading a few articles about Carroll, with him only being seen as a writer and poet by some, and a mediocre mathematician by others. The full picture, however, is that "Carroll only resembles Carroll the way an elephant only resembles an elephant".


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: The story enjoys a continuing appeal, as shown by the number of illustrated children's books of the fable; there is one for instance by Paul Galdone and another, "Seven Blind Mice", by Ed Young (1992).


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: In the title cartoon of one of his books, cartoonist Sam Gross postulated that one of the blind men, encountering a pile of the elephant feces, concluded that "An elephant is soft and mushy."


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: An elephant joke inverts the story in the following way, with the act of observation severely and fatally altering the subject of investigation:


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: Six blind elephants were discussing what men were like. After arguing they decided to find one and determine what it was like by direct experience. The first blind elephant felt the man and declared, 'Men are flat.' After the other blind elephants felt the man, they agreed.


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: "Touching the Elephant" was a 1997 BBC Radio 4 documentary in which four people of varying ages, all blind from birth, were brought to London Zoo to touch an elephant and describe their response.


title: Blind men and an elephant

text: Ship of Theseus, a 2012 Indian philosophical drama named after the eponymous thought experiment, also references the parable.


title: Borders of India

text: The Republic of India shares borders with several sovereign countries; it shares land borders with China, Bhutan, Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Myanmar. Bangladesh and Pakistan share both land borders as well as maritime borders, while Sri Lanka shares only a maritime border through Adam's Bridge. India's Andaman and Nicobar Islands share a maritime border with Thailand, Myanmar and Indonesia.


title: Borders of India

text: India shares land borders with seven sovereign nations. The state's Ministry of Home Affairs also recognizes a land border with an eighth nation, Afghanistan, as part of its claim of the Kashmir region (see Durand Line).


title: Borders of India

text: Maritime borders of India are the maritime boundary recognized by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea entails boundaries of territorial waters, contiguous zones, and exclusive economic zones. India, with its claim of a territorial maritime zone and exclusive economic zone, has a more than maritime border shared with seven nations.


title: Borders of India

text: India co-hosts the joint ceremonies with the neighbouring nations at the following border crossings. The most attended and emotionally-charged among these is the one at Wagha-Attari Border near Amritsar-Lahore.


title: Borders of India

text: At the following border crossing sites the beating retreat flag ceremonies are jointly held by the military of both nations every day at 6 pm, which are open to the public as tourist attractions. No special permit or ticket is needed. From north to south, the ceremony sites are as follows:


title: Borders of India

text: India and China have five Border Personnel Meeting point (BPM points) where they hold the flag meeting to discuss the military matters as well as the ceremonial BPMs for cultural exchange to improve bilateral relations by celebrating New Year's Day (January 1), India's Republic Day (January 26), Harvest Festival (April 14), May 15 PLA Day and Indian Independence Day (August 15). These meetings include the playing of each country's national anthem and saluting of their respective flags, and ceremonial addresses by representative of both armies. On Indian side only Indian citizens are allowed to visit only 2 passes out of these several BPM passes/sites, Bum La Pass and Nathu La, only on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays, only after obtaining Inner Line Permit (ILP) one day in advance.


title: Borders of India

text: Benapole–Petrapole border ceremony, a similar but much friendlier ceremony than Indo-Pak Attari-Wagah ceremony, is held daily jointly by India's Border Security Force and Border Guards Bangladesh at India-Bangladesh border from 4.30 to 5 pm. It is open to civilians without any ticket or special permit. The Benapole–Petrapole joint retreat ceremony results in lowering of national flags of India and Bangladesh.


title: Borders of India

text: India has 7 functional ICPs, and plans are underway to upgrade 13 more LCS to ICP, including 7 at borders taking total of border ICP to 14, at the cost of (c. Oct 2017). Designated Integrated Check Posts (ICP), with both customs and immigration facilities are:


title: Borders of India

text: This proposed list of border bazaars and haats is in varying stages of implementation, as suggested by State Governments to the Ministry of External Affairs for setting up Border Haats.


title: Borders of India

text: Pradeep Damodaran's book ""Borderlands: travels across India's boundaries"" chronicles all land borders of India. The bollywood director J. P. Dutta has specialised in making Hindi movies with India's border as key element of the theme, his movies are Border (1997 film), Refugee (2000 film), , Paltan (film), etc.


title: Time 100: The Most Important People of the Century

text: "Time" 100: The Most Important People of the Century is a compilation of the 20th century's 100 most influential people, published in "Time" magazine in 1999.


text: The idea for such a list started on February 1, 1998, with a debate at a symposium in Hanoi, Vietnam. The panel participants were former "CBS Evening News" anchor Dan Rather, historian Doris Kearns Goodwin, former New York governor Mario Cuomo, then–Stanford Provost Condoleezza Rice, publisher Irving Kristol, and "Time" managing editor Walter Isaacson.


text: In a separate issue on December 31, 1999, "Time" recognized Albert Einstein as the Person of the Century.


text: "Time"s article cites twenty persons in each of five broad categories: Leaders and Revolutionaries, Scientists and Thinkers, Builders and Titans, Artists and Entertainers, and Heroes and Icons.


text: Of the 100 chosen, Albert Einstein was chosen as the Person of the Century, on the grounds that he was the preeminent scientist in a century dominated by science. The editors of "Time" believed the 20th century "will be remembered foremost for its science and technology", and Einstein "serves as a symbol of all the scientists—such as Fermi, Heisenberg, Bohr, Richard Feynman, ...who built upon his work".


text: The cover of the magazine featured the famous image of Einstein taken in 1947 by American portrait photographer Philippe Halsman.


text: It was debated whether Adolf Hitler, responsible for World War II and the Holocaust, and Benito Mussolini for the Second Italo-Ethiopian War, should have been made Persons of the Century for their influence in politics.


text: The argument was based on "Time"'s explicit criterion that the persons chosen should have the greatest impact on this century, for better or worse. In the same 31 December 1999 issue of "Time", essayist Nancy Gibbs addressed the topic with the article "The Necessary Evil?" In the article, she argues that Hitler and Mussolini "were simply the latest in a long line of murderous figures, stretching back to before Genghis Khan. The only difference was technology: Both Hitler and Mussolini went about their cynical carnage with all the efficiency that modern industry had perfected" and present several rhetorical questions such as "Evil may be a powerful force, a seductive idea, but is it more powerful than genius, creativity, courage or generosity?"


text: The list of the top 20 Artists and Entertainers, in particular, was criticized for not including Elvis Presley, a decision that "Time" magazine representative Bruce Handy initially defended in the following way:


text: One of the most important, innovative things about rock is the whole notion of songwriters singing their own works, of the immediacy of expression. Since Elvis didn't write his own material, unlike The Beatles or Bob Dylan or Robert Johnson, who's also someone who could have been included, maybe that cut against him… I think the Beatles pushed the envelope a lot further. Elvis' most original recordings were his first. The Beatles started out as imitators, then continued to grow throughout their years together.


text: Handy was also asked to defend "Time"s decision to include the fictional character Bart Simpson from "The Simpsons" television series among the 100 most influential people of the 20th century, and he did so as follows:


text: I don't see how you can look at this century and not include cartoons. They're one of our great contributions, along with jazz and film. (I know, I know. The movies were a 19th-century invention. But we 20th century folks really put them to good use.)… To some extent, too, we wanted people who also represented important 20th century trends or developments. That would help account for the Barts and Oprahs... What Bart, or really the Simpsons, have done is merge social satire with popular animation in a way that hasn't really been done before.


text: Early in the running, professional wrestler Ric Flair received over 300,000 votes in the online Man of the Century poll and nearly 900,000 votes were cast for Jesus, however they were removed from the poll as Time.com officials stated that the votes for Flair and Jesus violated the "spirit" of the title.


text: The list also received criticism for its inclusion of Lucky Luciano, who was chosen in part because "he modernized the Mafia, shaping it into a smoothly run national crime syndicate focused on the bottom line". New York mayor Rudy Giuliani accused "Time" of "romanticizing" gangsters, and he stated: "The idea that he civilized the Mafia is absurd. He murdered in order to get the position that he had, and then he authorized hundreds and hundreds of murders." The selection was called an "outrage" by Philip Cannistraro, a Queens College professor of Italian-American studies, and Thomas Vitale, the New York State vice president of Fieri, an Italian-American charitable organization, criticized "Time" for "perpetuating myths" about Italian-Americans. However, "Time" business editor Bill Saporito defended the selection by describing Luciano as "kind of an evil genius" who had a deep impact on the underground economy. "We're not out there to heap glory on these people", he explained. "We're out to say these are people who influenced our lives." Saporito further noted that "every piece of merchandise that came out of the Garment District had a little extra cost in it because of organized crime."


title: Nestorianism

text: Nestorianism is a term used in Christian theology and Church history to refer to several mutually related but doctrinarily distinct sets of teachings. The first meaning of the term is related to the original teachings of Christian theologian Nestorius (d. 450), who promoted specific doctrines in the fields of Christology and Mariology. The second meaning of the term is much wider, and relates to a set of later theological teachings, that were traditionally labeled as Nestorian, but differ from the teachings of Nestorius in origin, scope and terminology. The "Oxford English Dictionary" defines Nestorianism as "The doctrine of Nestorius, patriarch of Constantinople (appointed in 428), by which Christ is asserted to have had distinct human and divine persons."


title: Nestorianism

text: Original Nestorianism is attested primarily by works of Nestorius, and also by other theological and historical sources that are related to his teachings in the fields of Mariology and Christology. His theology was influenced by teachings of Theodore of Mopsuestia (d. 428), the most prominent theologian of the Antiochian School. Nestorian Mariology rejects the title "Theotokos" ("God-bearer") for Mary, thus emphasizing distinction between divine and human aspects of the Incarnation. Nestorian Christology promotes the concept of a prosopic union of two natures (divine and human) in Jesus Christ, thus trying to avoid and replace the concept of a hypostatic union. This Christological position is defined as "radical dyophysitism", and differs from orthodox dyophysitism, that was reaffirmed at the Council of Chalcedon (451). Such teachings brought Nestorius into conflict with other prominent church leaders, most notably Cyril of Alexandria, who issued 12 anathemas against him (430). Nestorius and his teachings were eventually condemned as heretical at the Council of Ephesus in 431, and again at the Council of Chalcedon in 451. His teachings were considered as heretical not only in Chalcedonian Christianity, but even more in Oriental Orthodoxy.


title: Nestorianism

text: After the condemnation, some supporters of Nestorius, who were followers of the Antiochian School and the School of Edessa, relocated to the Sasanian Empire, where they were affiliated with the local Christian community, known as the Church of the East. During the period from 484 to 612, gradual development led to the creation of specific doctrinal views within the Church of the East. Evolution of those views was finalized by prominent East Syriac theologian Babai the Great (d. 628) who was using the specific Syriac term "qnoma" (ܩܢܘܡܐ) as a designation for dual (divine and human) substances within one prosopon (person or hypostasis) of Christ. Such views were officially adopted by the Church of the East at a council held in 612. Opponents of such views labeled them as "Nestorian" thus creating the practice of misnaming the Church of the East as Nestorian. For a long time, such labeling seemed appropriate, since Nestorius is officially venerated as a saint in the Church of the East. In modern religious studies, this label has been criticized as improper and misleading. As a consequence, the use of Nestorian label in scholarly literature, and also in the field of inter-denominational relations, is gradually being reduced to its primary meaning, focused on the original teachings of Nestorius.


title: Nestorianism

text: Nestorianism was condemned as heresy at the Council of Ephesus (431). The Armenian Church rejected the Council of Chalcedon (451) because they believed Chalcedonian Definition was too similar to Nestorianism. The Persian Nestorian Church, on the other hand, supported the spread of Nestorianism in Persarmenia. The Armenian Church and other eastern churches saw the rise of Nestorianism as a threat to the independence of their Church. Peter the Iberian, a Georgian prince, also strongly opposed the Chalcedonian Creed. Thus, in 491, Catholicos Babken I of Armenia, along with the Albanian and Iberian bishops met in Vagharshapat and issued a condemnation of the Chalcedonian Definition.


title: Nestorianism

text: Nestorians held that the Council of Chalcedon proved the orthodoxy of their faith and had started persecuting non-Chalcedonian or Monophysite Syrian Christians during the reign of Peroz I. In response to pleas for assistance from the Syrian Church, Armenian prelates issued a letter addressed to Persian Christians reaffirming their condemnation of the Nestorianism as heresy.


title: Nestorianism

text: Following the exodus to Persia, scholars expanded on the teachings of Nestorius and his mentors, particularly after the relocation of the School of Edessa to the (then) Persian city of Nisibis (modern-day Nusaybin in Turkey) in 489, where it became known as the School of Nisibis. Nestorian monasteries propagating the teachings of the Nisibis school flourished in 6th century Persarmenia.


title: Nestorianism

text: Despite this initial Eastern expansion, the Nestorians' missionary success was eventually deterred. David J. Bosch observes, "By the end of the fourteenth century, however, the Nestorian and other churches—which at one time had dotted the landscape of all of Central and even parts of East Asia—were all but wiped out. Isolated pockets of Christianity survived only in India. The religious victors on the vast Central Asian mission field of the Nestorians were Islam and Buddhism".


title: Nestorianism

text: Nestorianism is a radical form of dyophysitism, differing from orthodox dyophysitism on several points, mainly by opposition to the concept of hypostatic union. It can be seen as the antithesis to Eutychian Monophysitism, which emerged in reaction to Nestorianism. Where Nestorianism holds that Christ had two loosely united natures, divine and human, Monophysitism holds that he had but a single nature, his human nature being absorbed into his divinity. A brief definition of Nestorian Christology can be given as: "Jesus Christ, who is not identical with the Son but personally united with the Son, who lives in him, is one hypostasis and one nature: human." This contrasts with Nestorius' own teaching that the Word, which is eternal, and the Flesh, which is not, came together in a hypostatic union, 'Jesus Christ', Jesus thus being both fully man and God, of two "ousia" () (essences) but of one "prosopon" (person). Both Nestorianism and Monophysitism were condemned as heretical at the Council of Chalcedon.


title: Nestorianism

text: Nestorius developed his Christological views as an attempt to understand and explain rationally the incarnation of the divine Logos, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity as the man Jesus. He had studied at the School of Antioch where his mentor had been Theodore of Mopsuestia; Theodore and other Antioch theologians had long taught a literalist interpretation of the Bible and stressed the distinctiveness of the human and divine natures of Jesus. Nestorius took his Antiochene leanings with him when he was appointed Patriarch of Constantinople by Byzantine emperor Theodosius II in 428.


title: Nestorianism

text: Nestorius's teachings became the root of controversy when he publicly challenged the long-used title "Theotokos" ("God-Bearer") for Mary. He suggested that the title denied Christ's full humanity, arguing instead that Jesus had two persons (dyoprosopism), the divine Logos and the human Jesus. As a result of this prosopic duality, he proposed "Christotokos" (Christ-Bearer) as a more suitable title for Mary. He also advanced the image of Jesus as a warrior-king and rescuer of Israel over the traditional image of the "Christus dolens".


title: Nestorianism

text: Nestorius' opponents found his teaching too close to the heresy of adoptionism – the idea that Christ had been born a man who had later been "adopted" as God's son. Nestorius was especially criticized by Cyril, Patriarch of Alexandria, who argued that Nestorius's teachings undermined the unity of Christ's divine and human natures at the Incarnation. Some of Nestorius's opponents argued that he put too much emphasis on the human nature of Christ, and others debated that the difference that Nestorius implied between the human nature and the divine nature created a fracture in the singularity of Christ, thus creating two Christ figures. Nestorius himself always insisted that his views were orthodox, though they were deemed heretical at the Council of Ephesus in 431, leading to the Nestorian Schism, when churches supportive of Nestorius and the rest of the Christian Church separated. However, this formulation was never adopted by all churches termed "Nestorian". Indeed, the modern Assyrian Church of the East, which reveres Nestorius, does not fully subscribe to Nestorian doctrine, though it does not employ the title "Theotokos".


title: Nestorianism

text: Nestorianism became a distinct sect following the Nestorian Schism, beginning in the 430s. Nestorius had come under fire from Western theologians, most notably Cyril of Alexandria. Cyril had both theological and political reasons for attacking Nestorius; on top of feeling that Nestorianism was an error against true belief, he also wanted to denigrate the head of a competing patriarchate. Cyril and Nestorius asked Pope Celestine I to weigh in on the matter. Celestine found that the title "Theotokos" was orthodox, and authorized Cyril to ask Nestorius to recant. Cyril, however, used the opportunity to further attack Nestorius, who pleaded with Emperor Theodosius II to call a council so that all grievances could be aired.


title: Nestorianism

text: In 431 Theodosius called the Council of Ephesus. However, the council ultimately sided with Cyril, who held that the Christ contained two natures in one divine person ("hypostasis", unity of subsistence), and that the Virgin Mary, conceiving and bearing this divine person, is truly called the Mother of God ("Theotokos", meaning, God-bearer). The council accused Nestorius of heresy, and deposed him as patriarch. Upon returning to his monastery in 436, he was banished to Upper Egypt. Nestorianism was officially anathematized, a ruling reiterated at the Council of Chalcedon in 451. However, a number of churches, particularly those associated with the School of Edessa, supported Nestorius – though not necessarily his doctrine – and broke with the churches of the West. Many of Nestorius' supporters relocated to the Sasanian Empire of Iran, home to a vibrant but persecuted Christian minority. In Upper Egypt, Nestorius wrote his "Book of Heraclides", responding to the two councils at Ephesus (431, 449).


title: Nestorianism

text: The western provinces of the Persian Empire had been home to Christian communities, headed by metropolitans, and later patriarchs of Seleucia-Ctesiphon. The Christian minority in Persia was frequently persecuted by the Zoroastrian majority, which accused local Christians of political leanings towards the Roman Empire. In 424, the Church in Persia declared itself independent, in order to ward off allegations of any foreign allegiance. By the end of the 5th century, the Persian Church increasingly aligned itself with the teachings of Theodore of Mopsuestia and his followers, many of whom became dissidents after the councils of Ephesus (431), and Chalcedon (451). The Persian Church became increasingly opposed to doctrines promoted by those councils, thus furthering the divide between Chalcedonian and Persian currents.


title: Nestorianism

text: In 486, the Metropolitan Barsauma of Nisibis publicly accepted Nestorius' mentor Theodore of Mopsuestia as a spiritual authority. In 489, when the School of Edessa in Mesopotamia was closed by Byzantine Emperor Zeno for its pro-Nestorian teachings, the school relocated to its original home of Nisibis, becoming again the School of Nisibis, leading to the migration of a wave of Christian dissidents into Persia. The Persian patriarch Babai (497–502) reiterated and expanded upon the church's esteem for Theodore of Mopsuestia.


title: Nestorianism

text: Now firmly established in Persia, with centers in Nisibis, Ctesiphon, and Gundeshapur, and several "metropoleis", the Persian Church began to branch out beyond the Sasanian Empire. However, through the sixth century, the church was frequently beset with internal strife and persecution by Zoroastrians. The infighting led to a schism, which lasted from 521 until around 539 when the issues were resolved. However, immediately afterward Roman-Persian conflict led to the persecution of the church by the Sassanid emperor Khosrow I; this ended in 545. The church survived these trials under the guidance of Patriarch Aba I, who had converted to Christianity from Zoroastrianism.


title: Nestorianism

text: The church emerged stronger after this period of ordeal, and increased missionary efforts farther afield. Missionaries established dioceses in the Arabian Peninsula and India (the Saint Thomas Christians). They made some advances in Egypt, despite the strong miaphysite presence there. Missionaries entered Central Asia and had significant success converting local Turkic tribes.


title: Nestorianism

text: The Anuradhapura Cross discovered in Sri Lanka strongly suggests a strong presence of Nestorian Christianity in Sri Lanka during the 6th century AD according to Humphrey Codrington, who based his claim on a 6th-century manuscript, Christian Topography, that mentions of a community of Persian Christians who were known to reside in Taprobanê (the Ancient Greek name for Sri Lanka).


title: Nestorianism

text: Nestorian missionaries were firmly established in China during the early part of the Tang dynasty (618–907); the Chinese source known as the Nestorian Stele records a mission under a Persian proselyte named Alopen as introducing Nestorian Christianity to China in 635. The Jingjiao Documents (also described by The Japanese scholar P. Y. Saeki as "Nestorian Documents") or Jesus Sutras are said to be connected with Alopen.


title: Nestorianism

text: Following the Arab conquest of Persia, completed in 644, the Persian Church became a "dhimmi" community under the Rashidun Caliphate. The church and its communities abroad grew larger under the Caliphate. By the 10th century it had 15 metropolitan sees within the Caliphate's territories, and another five elsewhere, including in China and India. After that time, however, Nestorianism went into decline.


title: Nestorianism

text: In a 1996 article published in the Bulletin of the John Rylands Library, Fellow of the British Academy Sebastian Brock wrote: "...the term 'Nestorian Church' has become the standard designation for the ancient oriental church which in the past called itself 'The Church of the East', but which today prefers the fuller title 'The Assyrian Church of the East'. The Common Christological Declaration between the Catholic Church and the Assyrian Church of the East signed by Pope John Paul II and Mar Dinkha IV underlines the Chalcedonian Christological formulation as the expression of the common faith of these Churches and recognizes the legitimacy of the title "Theotokos".


title: Nestorianism

text: In a 2017 paper, Mar Awa Royel, Bishop of the Assyrian Church, stated the position of that church: "After the Council of Ephesus (431), when Nestorius the patriarch of Constantinople was condemned for his views on the unity of the Godhead and the humanity in Christ, the Church of the East was branded as 'Nestorian' on account of its refusal to anathematize the patriarch."


title: Nestorianism

text: Several historical records suggest that the Assyrian Church of the East may have been in Sri Lanka between the middle fifth and sixth centuries.


title: Toby Regbo

text: Toby Finn Regbo (born 18 October 1991) is an English actor who has appeared in film, television and theatre. He is known for his role as young Nemo Nobody in the science fiction drama "Mr. Nobody", as Francis II of France on The CW series "Reign", Æthelred on the BBC Two and Netflix series "The Last Kingdom", Tommaso Peruzzi on "Medici: Masters of Florence" and Jack Blackfriars on "A Discovery of Witches".


title: Toby Regbo

text: Toby Regbo was born in Hammersmith, London, England. His father's family is of Norwegian origin. His maternal grandfather was an Italian cruise ship captain, and his maternal grandmother was an Australian ballerina; his mother was brought up in London.


title: Toby Regbo

text: His interest in acting started with plays at school; later on, he attended Young Blood Theatre Company.