The Israel FA has accused Republic of Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrimsson of "ignorance, hypocrisy and stupidity" in comments made last week.
During his squad announcement for the upcoming Nations League games which include two fixtures against Israel on 27 September and 4 October, Hallgrimsson said: "We're not playing with genocide, we're playing against genocide.
We're playing against Israel, we're not playing with Israel," when the subject of keeping his players focused on the games was raised.
On Monday, Israel's football body hit back on those comments on social media, saying: "We have contributed to the world and humanity in countless fields, earning an impressive number of Nobel Prizes along the way.
"Unfortunately, we have not yet found a cure for stupidity, ignorance and hypocrisy displayed by @IrelandFootball team coach. We're not playing with ignorance, hypocrisy and stupidity, we're playing against the coach who embodies them."
The Football Association of Ireland has not responded to the Israel FA's comments, with a protest taking place at the Republic of Ireland team's hotel on Monday evening as pressure to boycott the fixtures continues to build.
The armed Palestinian group Hamas attacked Israel on 7 October 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages.
In response, Israel launched a massive military offensive in Gaza.
The United Nations believes the retaliation has killed more than 70,000 Palestinians.
Israel has regularly denied committing genocide or war crimes and has said its actions in Gaza have been justified as a means of self-defence.
More than 160 Irish sportspeople have signed an open letter by the Irish Sport for Palestine Group to urge a boycott of the games against Israel.
The Republic of Ireland are due to play Israel on 27 September in Hungary before the reverse fixture in Serbia on 4 October.
The letter states that the FAI, UEFA and the Irish government should have intervened before this stage, but there is still time to "show the power of sport to unite".
In July, the FAI's General Assembly endorsed a motion for the Republic of Ireland to go ahead with their upcoming Nations League fixtures against Israel with 75 votes to 32 against and three abstentions from the 114 delegates.
The FAI had previously said boycotting the games would cause "significant and lasting harm" to Irish football as well as leading to a potential loss of 10.3m euros (£9m).
The fixture has caused much controversy with Republic of Ireland head coach Heimir Hallgrimsson adding that he spoke to players in his squad individually about the prospect of facing Israel, and "none of us feel comfortable playing in these games".
The Nations League games mark the Republic of Ireland's first competitive action since their World Cup play-off semi-final heartbreak against the Czech Republic in March.
Since the penalty shootout loss in Prague, they have played four friendlies, beating Grenada and Qatar and drawing with North Macedonia and Canada.
Credit: BBC
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