Maccabi fan ban: Pressure mounts on WMP chief constable to resign following ‘deeply concerning’ revelations

During the session Guildford confirmed that the force had been made aware two months prior to the match of the likelihood that vigilante groups in Birmingham planned to “take action” against the Maccabi fans, but said he only told MPs about this yesterday because “this is the first time specifically that you’ve asked for that detail”.

Israel’s embassy in the UK today said it was “deeply concerned by the emerging evidence” heard yesterday.

In a statement it said: “The newly disclosed assessments indicate that the primary threat to public safety and to the Israeli and Jewish communities did not originate from the fans themselves, but from organised radical Islamist groups who were actively preparing and arming themselves with the intention of harming Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters.”

It continued: “The portrayal of Israeli fans as violent was a gross mischaracterisation that served the needs of those actively inciting against an Israeli team. This framing diverted attention away from credible intelligence warnings regarding extremist elements preparing to target Israeli and Jewish Maccabi supporters, and instead placed blame on the very community that was facing the threat.”

WMP’s actions “undermine real security risks, and even encourages a climate in which hostility towards Israeli and Jewish communities can be normalised under the rule of law.”  the statement said, adding: “These matters require full accountability.”

MPs who questioned the WMP chiefs also criticised their account of events in Amsterdam, accusing them of painting an inaccurate picture of the behaviour of Tel Aviv fans to justify their ban in the UK.

At the time of the match, WMP said it had taken the decision to bar fans of the away side because, having carried out a "thorough" assessment "based on current intelligence and previous incidents, including violent clashes and hate crime offences that occurred during the 2024 Europa League match between [Dutch team] Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv in Amsterdam”, the game had been deemed “high risk".

This version of events has been rejected by Dutch police and the mayor of Amsterdam. In November, the JC obtained an official Dutch “statement of facts” dossier, which showed of the 59 arrests that were made, just 10 were Israeli.

During yesterday’s session, Labour MP Joani Reid listed several specific points that called into question WMP’s stated version of events: “We have minutes that highlight that the decision was made in the absence of intelligence, that there are varying views/stats on what happened in Amsterdam, but the Dutch police have written to say that they don't recognise your version of the conversation,” she said.

The last time Guildford appeared before the committee, she told him "You told [us] that the Jewish community supported your decision, which wasn't true, that 5,000 police have been deployed in Amsterdam despite your own figures and the Dutch saying that it's 1,200 … and that you had not been subject to any political pressure”.

She noted it had “now emerged” that the police had met with “local activists” who opposed the match, and asked: “Would you make the same decision again?”

Guildford responded that the minutes of the meeting, which were revealed by the Sunday Times, did not accurately reflect what took place, adding “there was an abundance of intelligence”.

Although he defended his force’s decision-making, he said: “Do I think that the decision was reasonable in the circumstances? Yes. Could it have been a different decision … possibly it could have been”.

Guildford also restated how WMP had of their initial claims that the Jewish community in Birmingham backed the ban on Maccabi fans attending, adding that he was sorry and regrets “the focus that this has placed on our local Jewish community in light of all the other events that have happened nationally and globally”.

Guildford was asked earlier in the session about an alleged incident involving Maccabi fans attacking a taxi driver and whether he stood by his account of it. He said that the incident was brought to his attention by CST, adding that it was “one of the first bits of information they provided us with”.

As the session continued, CST posted on X what it said was further information about their communications with WMP, and “other recipients”, “so the information can be seen within its full context”.

CST’s situation report on events in Amsterdam in November 2024 highlighted the antisemitic violence that the Maccabi fans were subject to, including: “hit-and-run antisemitic attacks against Israeli fans”.

The communication continued: “The individuals who attacked Maccabi fans were not Ajax hooligans, but rather local residents who engaged in politically/racially motivated violence. These attacks were not a fight over football and were antisemitic in nature.”

MPs also heard yesterday from representatives from Birmingham City Council, including council leader John Cotton.

Cotton, who opposed the ban on Israeli fans, said WMP had not told him about the threat posed to Israeli fans by vigilante groups: “I was not told anything about armed groups or anything of that nature … And if anybody had mentioned the prospect of armed groups I obviously would have responded quite vociferously because something of that nature is clearly a massive concern that needs to be addressed.”