But the International Olympic Committee has all but ruled out the suggestion, with a spokesperson telling SBS News both the teams of Israel and the Palestinian territories are recognised and “have equal rights”.

But he said he believes “there’s more courage to be had” in imposing targeted sanctions on Netanyahu, who was issued an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court last year over alleged war crimes of starvation and crimes against humanity. Netanyahu denies the allegations.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) prevented the cricketer from wearing shoes at a Test match in December 2023, which had text that read: “All lives are equal” and “freedom is a human right”. He was charged by the ICC for wearing a black armband in support of people in Gaza, then blocked by the council again from displaying a dove sticker on his bat ahead of the Boxing Day Test match.

In a statement to SBS News earlier this month, a spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said: “The IDF forcefully rejects the allegation of deliberate starvation of the civilian population.”