The Palestine national team achieved its best historical position in the FIFA world ranking yesterday, surpassing Israel for the first time. The President of the Palestinian Federation, Jibril Rajoub, celebrated a "historic success" with the rise to 82nd place in the ranking, while Israel dropped 16 places and fell to 98th, after their disappointing campaign in the World Cup qualifiers.

However, Palestine has been on a winning streak on their way to the Asian Cup, including a 10-0 victory over Bhutan.

The comparison between their sports results comes within the framework of the political and also football conflict between Palestinians and Israelis.

The Palestinian Federation has denounced in recent years the controls that their players are subjected to at Israeli security points in the occupied West Bank or the blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip.

A spokesperson for the Israeli Federation congratulated the Palestinians on their rise in the ranking. "We wish them all possible success," he said, adding that Israelis were willing to play a friendly match against the Palestinians. "And may the best team win," he concluded. Palestine has been a member of FIFA since 1998. (D)