Amman: South Korea and Tottenham Hotspur captain Son Heung-min praised the Palestinian national football team's resilience after a 1-1 draw at a 2026 FIFA World Cup Asian qualifying match. "Today's game was not easy. I would like to give a round of applause to the Palestinian team. I think we need to learn from seeing them work so hard even in difficult situations," Son, 32, said after the match Tuesday at the Amman International Stadium. Zeid Qunbar gave an early lead to Palestine but Son, who is a longtime Tottenham winger, equalized for South Korea in the 16th minute. According to Anadolu Agency, Son expressed that the game was challenging due to their own mistakes but acknowledged the team's ability to quickly equalize. Son has been a forward for South Korea since December 2010, scoring 51 goals in 131 international appearances. He has represented South Korea at the 2014, 2018, and 2022 World Cup finals. Currently, South Korea leads the World Cup Asian Qualifying Group B with 14 points in six matches. Th eir nearest competitor, Iraq, has 11 points, while Palestine sits at the bottom of the group with three points. After 10 matches, the two best teams in each group will qualify for the 2026 World Cup finals, which will be co-hosted by the US, Canada, and Mexico. South Korea, who co-hosted and reached the semifinals in 2002, has appeared in 11 World Cup tournaments, with their last appearance in Qatar 2022. Meanwhile, Palestine has been forced to play their home games on neutral grounds due to Israel's onslaught on the Gaza Strip. Israel launched a war on Gaza following an attack last year by the Palestinian resistance group, Hamas. The ensuing attacks by Israel have resulted in nearly 44,000 deaths, most of them women and children, and more than 104,000 injuries. The second year of conflict in Gaza has drawn growing international condemnation, with figures and institutions labeling the Israeli attacks and the blocking of aid deliveries as a deliberate attempt to destroy a population.