West Midlands police insist decision to ban Maccabi fans ‘not politically influenced’

Police chiefs facing scrutiny over a decision to ban fans of an Israeli football team from attending a match in Birmingham have insisted the move was not politically influenced.West Midlands Police (WMP) leaders defended their position at the home affairs committee on Tuesday after being recalled to give further evidence over the decision to ban fans of Maccabi Tel Aviv from attending a Europa League match against Aston Villa on 6 November.Supporters of the Israeli football team were barred from travelling to the game at Villa Park by the local Safety Advisory Group (SAG), which cited safety concerns based on advice from the police force.Members of the home affairs committee on Tuesday recalled West Midlands Police’s chief constable Craig Guildford, and commanders involved in the decision making, greeting parts of the force’s new testimony before them with outrage.Police said they had intelligence the Israeli fans would be the main perpetrators of trouble, a claim that is disputed.The cross-party committee of MPs, said parts of the intelligence gathering seemed “one sided”, inflating the threat Maccabi fans may have posed while underplaying to threat to them from those in Birmingham angered by Israel’s attacks on Gaza.They said the minutes from SAG meetings showed pressure coming from two councillors, who said that away fans should not attend the game.As intelligence was being gathered ahead of the game, one document contained claims locals in Birmingham might “arm” themselves.Mike O’Hara, WMP’s assistant chief constable, said: “We had people purporting to be Maccabi fans online who were goading local community members and saying ‘this is what you’re going to get’. This was all forming part of the heat of the situation, so based on that, the commanders tried to make the right decision.”The fixture was classified high risk by WMP, with the force pointing to alleged violent clashes and hate crime offences that occurred during the 2024 Europa League match between Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv in Amsterdam.However, Dutch police have disputed the accuracy of this information.Guildford denied he or the police force were politically motivated to find evidence to justify the ban.“From everything that I’ve read, and the commanders that I spoke to, I do not believe that there was political influence on that decision.“Lots of local politicians and local members of the community I’m sure wanted to try and influence it, but I honestly don’t think it was influenced,” he told the committee.Guildford defended claims by committee chair Karen Bradley that it felt like the force was “scraping” to find a reason to justify the ban.“I’m really sorry if it comes across in that way. That was absolutely not the case,” he said.Appearing before MPs, the Birmingham council leader John Cotton refused to comment on whether he had confidence in Guildford. He said: “I do have concerns about the quality of the material provided to the SAG.”In the second evidence hearing, Bradley concluded by telling Guildford her colleagues would be producing a report. Committee sources expect it will be critical.The home affairs committee’s report is one of several into the incident, with some suggesting the ban was caving in to antisemitism.His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary has been ordered by the home secretary to investigate the intelligence presented by WMP.Keir Starmer denounced the ban, which came shortly after the terrorist attack on a Manchester synagogue in which two worshippers died, as have opposition parties.Maccabi Tel Aviv declined their allocation of tickets.