With Israel’s airstrikes against Palestine intensifying, the Israeli under-18 (U18) men’s softball team will not participate in the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) U18 Softball World Cup.

WBSC announced on its official website on the 28th (Korean time), “Israel has withdrawn from the 2023 U18 Men’s Softball World Cup due to the authorities’ ban on overseas travel.”주소

The U18 Men’s Softball World Cup will be held in Hermosillo, Mexico from November 11 to 19, local time. A total of 12 teams will participate and be divided into 2 groups of 6 teams each. After the opening round (group stage), the top three teams from each group will advance to the super round and compete for the championship.

Initially, Israel was placed in Group B along with Japan, the United States, Argentina, Venezuela, and New Zealand. The opening match of the tournament was also scheduled to be played between Israel and Argentina.

However, as the conflict between Israel and Palestine intensified, Israel was unable to participate in the U18 Men’s Softball World Cup.

In the end, WBSC decided to hold the competition with 11 teams excluding Israel. The group composition will remain the same, and Group B will hold the opening round with only 5 teams.