Protests outside, silence inside as Canada goes up 1-0 on Israel at Davis Cup tie

It was a surreal scene in Halifax on Friday as Canada kicked off its Davis Cup tennis tie against Israel behind closed doors at Scotiabank Centre in Halifax.

Save for athletes and staff of the two teams and the necessary officials, who were either on the court or courtside, the venue that normally holds over 10,500 spectators was completely empty.

The squeak of tennis shoes, the hand slaps between teammates and other sounds normally masked by ambient chatter were heard clear as day on the CBC's live stream, which had no commentary.

Tennis Canada made the call earlier this week to hold the matches without spectators or media present, citing safety concerns it said were flagged by local authorities and security agencies.

Meanwhile, about 400 protesters gathered for a brief rally beside Citadel Hill National Historic site, where organizer Em Bailey said almost 1,000 people had signed a petition opposing Israel's participation in the games.

"We stand firmly demanding that the Davis Cup games between Team Canada and Team Israel be cancelled," said Bailey, a member of Palestine Solidarity Halifax. "And that team Israel is suspended from the Davis Cup. We refuse to accept anti-Palestinian racism."

The protesters then marched peacefully through the port city's downtown and stopped in front of Scotiabank Centre.

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Under bright sunshine, many of the demonstrators were carrying placards and Palestinian flags while chanting slogans and beating drums amid snarled traffic and police officers on bicycles.

One man wrapped in a Palestinian flag waved a tennis racket that held a piece of paper with "No Sportswashing