Muslim Ozil donates WC bonus to charities

Cairo, NU Online
German Muslim football star Mesut Ozil has donated his World Cup prize money to various charity projects in Brazil to fund the surgeries of 23 Brazilian children.<>

“Dear fans, prior to the #WorldCup I supported the surgery of eleven sick children. Since the victory of the #WorldCup is not only due to eleven players but to our whole team, I will now raise the number to 23. This is my personal thank-you for the hospitality of the people of Brazil,” Ozil announced on his Facebook page.

Ozil is one of the key players in Germany’s national team which won its fourth World Cup last July 13 in a final against Argentina.According to media reports, Ozil earned a £237,000 bonus for helping Germany win the final and £118,000 for his side's semi-final win.

Ozil, who is of Turkish descent, is a practicing Muslim and he recites the Quran before games.

The announcement comes after reports initially stated Ozil would be donating his winnings to the children of Gaza.

The claim was denied by the soccer player’s representative Roland Eitel.

"The claim that Mesut donated money to Gaza is not true," Eitel told Express.

"Maybe in the future, who knows? He donated money to causes in Brazil and he is now on holiday."

Another donation, however, went to Gaza from the Algerian team who donated their total £5.25million prize money to Gaza after reaching the knockout stages.

Algeria striker Islam Slimani said the entire squad were donating the money because the territory needed it "more than us".

Israel has been launching relentless airstrikes against Gaza since July 8 in which hundreds have been killed and injured in the tiny coastal strip.

Israel has claimed that its new war on Gaza, under the title Operation Protect Edge, was a response to the rocket attacks being carried out by Hamas.

According to Gaza health ministry, more than 213 Palestinian, civilians were killed since the start of the Israeli attacks last week.

More than 1360 have also been inured “of whom 386 are children and 249 women,” UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said Monday, July 14.

Editing by Sudarto Murtaufiq