Palestine mourns the loss of its friend Maradona

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Thursday expressed "his deepest sorrow" over the death of Diego Armando Maradona and offered his condolences to the footballer's family and his Argentinean counterpart, Alberto Fernandez.

"We have received with great sorrow the news of the death" of Maradona, a "football legend" who "delighted millions of people with his outstanding sporting talent" and was "a dear friend of Palestine and its people", said Abbas in a statement issued by the official Palestinian news agency Wafa.

Maradona, who died this Wednesday at the age of 60 at his home in Buenos Aires from a heart attack, had shown his support for the Palestinian cause on several occasions, a fact recalled by local media.

The Argentine star met personally with Abas in 2018, during the World Cup in Russia, and dedicated a signed Argentine national team shirt to him.