Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called on Iran to end its ban on competing against Israel in international sports in light of Iranian wrestler Alireza Karimi's recent forfeit at the Senior U23 World Championships in Poland.

Iranian coaches told Karimi to lose to Russia's Alikhan Zhabrailov in the first round of the the 86kg bracket on Nov. 25 to avoid having to face Israel's Uri Kalashnikov in the next round. Karimi was later slated to wrestle Kalashnikov in the repechage; however, Karimi withdrew from the competition rather than face the Israeli wrestler. 

More on the incident in Poland at the U23 Championships can be found here. 

News of the forfeit, a move consistent with Iranian competitors for decades across all sports, reached the highest offices of the Israeli government. Prime Minister Netanyahu called for Iran to end its policy in a video released on Twitter earlier this week.

I never imagined I'd say this... pic.twitter.com/vcjk7i0a6Q

— PM of Israel (@IsraeliPM) December 4, 2017

Beyond Iran, Netanyahu had a further message for the rest of the world with regard to competition.

I want you to film yourself playing a sport against someone of a different nationality, a different faith, or a different color. Then I want you to shake hands, go out for a drink together, and then upload this to social media.

United World Wrestling, the sport's international governing body, has rules forbidding Iran's de facto boycott of Israeli wrestlers and is reportedly investigating the incident.