UK Jewish groups call for ouster of cop who banned Maccabi Tel Aviv fans from soccer match
Parliamentary discussion of ban in November match against Aston Villa has ignited fresh criticism, as groups say 'significant harm' done to UK Jews' confidence in police
Two British Jewish groups jointly called for the ouster of a local police chief, and Israel’s Foreign Ministry called for “action and accountability,” over allegations that the police mishandled the banning of Maccabi Tel Aviv fans from a UK soccer game last fall.
The contentious decision to ban the Israeli fans from a match against Aston Villa on November 6 was initially made after the West Midlands Police advised the group responsible for issuing safety certificates for the game to ban Maccabi’s supporters over “public safety concerns.”
This week, a British parliamentary tribunal increased scrutiny of the police department’s decision-making, following widespread criticism. At the tribunal on Tuesday, chair Dame Karen Bradley accused the local police force of “scraping” to find a reason to justify the ban.
While police had claimed that hundreds of Maccabi fans had targeted Muslim communities on the night preceding a 2024 game against Ajax in Amsterdam, Amsterdam police have since disputed that characterization of the confrontation, saying Maccabi supporters were targeted. Following that game, a violent riot ensued during which local gangs — made up largely of local Muslims and Arabs — attacked Israeli fans, in what Dutch leadership described as an antisemitic act.
West Midlands Police’s chief constable, Craig Guildford, defended the force’s decision, replying to the “scraping” accusation: “I’m really sorry if it comes across in that way. That was absolutely not the case.”
But in a statement, the Board of Deputies of British Jews and Jewish Leadership Council said that if Guildford does not resign, “responsibility lies with central government to intervene,” and that “significant harm has been done to the confidence of the Jewish community in the Police.”
“It seems that the police reached a decision first, and then searched for evidence to justify it, apparently influenced by the threat posed by local extremists,” the groups said. “It is also apparent that claims about the previous behavior of Maccabi Tel Aviv fans were unsubstantiated or erroneous.”
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and a host of Jewish groups decried the decision at the time. Starmer called the ban the “wrong decision,” and added, “We will not tolerate antisemitism on our streets.”
Birmingham, the UK’s second-largest city and home to a significant Muslim population, had been the scene of regular pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel rallies over the two years of the Gaza war.
Mike O’Hara, the assistant chief constable, told the parliamentary tribunal that “there was a lot of intelligence that people would actively seek out Maccabi fans and seek violence towards them,” according to The Times.
Following the game, O’Hara also apologized for creating the impression that members of the Jewish community supported the ban on Maccabi supporters.
“Please can I apologize and make very clear that it was not my intention to imply that there were members of the Jewish community who had explicitly expressed support for the exclusion of Maccabi fans,” O’Hara reportedly wrote in the letter last year.
But the tribunal has ignited a fresh round of criticism over the ban.
Kemi Badenoch, the British Conservative Party leader, said on Tuesday that West Midlands police “knew extremists were planning to attack Jews for going to a football match” but their response was to “blame and remove Jewish people instead,” according to The Times.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry also wrote on Wednesday in a post on X that the conduct of the West Midlands Police towards Maccabi fans was “utterly disgraceful.”
“There is a specific term for the phenomenon of scapegoating Israelis and Jews while exonerating the true perpetrators – jihadists seeking to harm Jews. It is called antisemitism,” the post read. “Regrettably, this is the reality of Britain today. There must be action and accountability for such actions.”
Maccabi Tel Aviv said prior to the match that it would not send fans, who are traditionally afforded a section of the hosting team’s stadium. The team lost 2-0 to Aston Villa, as protests took place outside the stadium amid a heavy police presence.