A West Midlands Police chief did not intend to suggest that members of Birmingham’s Jewish community endorsed the decision to bar Maccabi Tel Aviv fans from a Europa League match with Aston Villa, the force has stated.
During a House of Commons inquiry on Monday, MPs pressed whether Jewish community representatives had voiced displeasure about Maccabi fans attending the November 6 game. West Midlands Assistant Chief Constable Mike O’Hara answered affirmatively, saying “yes.”
The Sunday Times later reported that O’Hara circulated a letter to Jewish community members in which he apologised for any implication of explicit support within the community for the ban.
The decision to prohibit away supporters from Villa Park drew widespread criticism, including from Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, who expressed frustration with the move.
Authorities had classified the match as high risk based on intelligence and prior incidents.
When asked to justify the ban, ACC O’Hara told the Home Affairs Committee that some Jewish community representatives in Birmingham had indicated they did not want Maccabi fans at the match.
Conservative MP Karen Bradley, chairing the committee, asked if Jewish representatives had made that stance. O’Hara replied that such views were present among a range of faiths and backgrounds who had expressed concern, and that Jewish representation was among those cited in the risk assessment.
A police spokesperson later clarified that the officer did not intend to imply explicit Jewish support for excluding Maccabi fans. The force said it would engage further with the committee and ensure the framing is clear, especially in communications with Jewish community representatives.
In a letter to a local representative, O’Hara acknowledged the community’s concerns about Monday’s statements and apologised for any suggestion that Jewish individuals explicitly supported excluding Maccabi fans.
Sag (Birmingham’s Safety Advisory Group), which includes the city council and police, had partly based its decision on police intelligence. Chief Constable Craig Guildford testified that the Dutch authorities provided information showing a preplanned, aggressive pattern from Maccabi ultras toward the local community, including assaults on taxi drivers, vandalism of flags, and even people being thrown into a river.
Dutch police, however, later disputed the basis for the ban, noting the intelligence used was not corroborated and describing the cited disorder as overstated. Lord Mann, the government’s antisemitism adviser, told the Home Affairs Committee that only a single flag had been torn down and there was one incident involving a taxi driver.
Following the decision, the prime minister condemned antisemitism and emphasised policing’s duty to allow all football fans to enjoy the game without fear of violence or intimidation.
The match, supported by more than 700 officers, proceeded with minimal disorder and only a handful of arrests. Earlier demonstrations outside the stadium included pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli groups waving banners and flags.
