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PHOTO: Real Madrid Star Sparks Controversy in Middle East With Israel Flag Emoji Tweet

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Real Madrid's Marco Asensio has caught himself up in the middle of the Israel-Palestine storm after a posting an Israel flag on a tweet showing him in front of the Western Wall.

The 21-year-old was in Jerusalem with the Spanish national team, playing in his country's 1-0 World Cup qualifying win against Israel.

Asensio posted a photo showed him in front of the Western Wall (also known as the Wailing Wall) and he captioned the photo: "Cultural visit" along with an emoji of the Israel national flag.

The tweet outranged many Palestine supporters on social media, with several claiming he was on "occupied territory" and the use of the flag was inappropriate.

Another social media user replied to Asensio's post, asking: "Why are you getting your Arab followers angry with an occupation flag? It is Palestine." 

There were demands for the midfielder to remove the post, though it remains on his profile for his near 600,000 followers to see. 

Asensio has burst onto the scene in the last twelve months or so, scoring some stunning goals for Real Madrid as he helped them do a league and Champions League double last season.

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