West Midlands police face MPs after barring Israeli football team’s supporters from match against Aston Villa
West Midlands police “did not do themselves any favours” when giving evidence to MPs about a decision to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv fans, a Birmingham Jewish leader has said.
The force’s chief constable, Craig Guildford, is facing growing calls from MPs and Jewish groups to resign after further details emerged about the circumstances surrounding a ban on away fans attending the Europa League match against Aston Villa at Villa Park on 6 November.
Senior officers were challenged by a cross-party committee on Tuesday, where they insisted the ban was “based on safety” and was not politically influenced. MPs questioned the police on the evidence they had gathered, which they said seemed “one sided” and inflated the threat of Maccabi fans.
Ruth Jacobs, the chair of the Birmingham and West Midlands Jewish Community, which represents about 1,500 Jewish members, said on Wednesday that it was still not clear what led to the ban made by the council-led security advisory group (SAG) and there continued to be “conflicting reports”.
