Argentina's soccer officials have apologised to Israel for cancelling a pre-World Cup friendly between the two nations, but said their players' safety was under threat.
Some Israeli politicians have accused the Argentine team of caving to terrorism in cancelling the match, scheduled for Saturday, following pro-Palestinian protests.
The protests included images of Argentina's white and sky-blue striped jersey stained with red paint to resemble blood and threats to burn posters of Argentina star Lionel Messi.
Claudio Tapia, president of the Argentine Football Association, apologised for cancelling the match but stood by the decision.
"What has happened in the last 72 hours, the actions, the threats that have occurred have led us to take the decision not to travel," he said in Barcelona, where the Argentine team is training prior to the start of the World Cup next week.
"(We) apologise to the Israeli community. It's nothing against the Israeli community, the Jewish community and I would like everyone to take this decision as a contribution to world peace," he said.
A senior official at the Argentine Football Federation said the national team decided to call off the match with Israel after receiving threats from terror group Hamas.
The official did not provide evidence or details of the alleged threats.
Argentina's players are also behind the decision.
"In the end, they've done the right thing, and this is behind us," Argentina striker Gonzalo Higuain told ESPN.
"Health and common sense come first. We felt that it wasn't right to go."
The dispute has become a full-blown international incident, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calling Argentine President Mauricio Macri to urge him to intervene, to no avail.
Later on Wednesday, Israel's Sports Ministry said a "negotiation" about the match was underway, but gave no further details.
"It's unfortunate the soccer knights of Argentina did not withstand the pressure of the Israeli-hating inciters, whose only goal is to harm our basic right to self-defence and bring about the destruction of Israel," said Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman. "We will not yield before a pack of anti-Semitic terrorist supporters."
The head of the Palestinian football association, Jibril Rajoub, had called on Arab soccer fans to burn Messi posters and T-shirts if he participated.
Following the cancellation, he held a press conference in Ramallah featuring a picture of him with Messi and a sign reading: "From Palestine, thank you Messi."
Rajoub had accused Israel of playing politics with the game, by moving it from its original location in Haifa to Jerusalem, and by trying to link it to celebrations surrounding Israel's 70th anniversary.
He called it a victory for "ethics and values" of sports. "They tried to use sport as a tool for political ends, and for this I think, they failed," Rajoub said.
