By Jacob Gurvis
(JTA) — NBA star Kyrie Irving said he would cover an $11,941 fine the NFL imposed on Houston Texans Pro Bowl linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair for writing Hind Rajab, the name of a Palestinian girl killed in Gaza, on his eye black during Sunday’s game.
Irving said Wednesday on social media that he would “take care of his fine.”
The NFL fined Al-Shaair, who is Muslim, a similar amount last season when he wrote “STOP THE GENOCIDE” on his eye black during a playoff game in January.
According to the NFL rulebook, players are “prohibited from wearing, displaying, or otherwise conveying personal messages either in writing or illustration, unless such message has been approved in advance by the League office.” The rule also states that the league “will not grant permission” to players displaying a message related “to political activities or causes, other non-football events, causes or campaigns, or charitable causes or campaigns.”
Irving, who plays for the Dallas Mavericks, has been outspoken in his support for Palestinian causes. He was also at the center of an antisemitism scandal in 2022 after he shared an antisemitic film online and initially refused to apologize. He was subsequently suspended and issued an apology.
Rajab was 5 years old when she was killed along with six members of her family in Gaza in 2024 after their vehicle came under fire from Israeli forces. The Israeli military said last month that it had opened a criminal investigation into the incident.
“The Voice of Hind Rajab,” a film about the killing, was nominated for a Golden Globe.
Al-Shaair supported the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund through the NFL’s “My Cause, My Cleats” program in 2023, 2024 and 2025, and has worn cleats that read “FREE” on one side, referring to the “Free Palestine” movement, and “Surely to Allah we belong and to him we will all return” on the other. The cleats also featured the text, “AT LEAST 41,788 Palestinians killed, 10,000+ estimated to be under the rubble, 96,974 wounded.”
The Texans named Al-Shaair their 2025 Walter Payton Man of the Year Award winner, which recognizes players for their performance on the field and community service.
