Israel launches blistering attack over UK police ‘Islamist appeasement’ | UK | News
Israel has accused UK police chiefs of allowing antisemitism, hatred and hostility towards Israel and Jewish communities to be “normalised under the rule of law”. Diplomats have criticized West Midlands Police Chief Constable Craig Guildford for his disastrous admission that police relied on key pieces of intelligence ahead of the Aston Villa v Maccabi Tel Aviv football match.
Under intense pressure, he acknowledged that local gangs planned to “arm” themselves and attack traveling Israeli supporters. However, West Midlands Police justified the decision to remove fans over fears of hooliganism; 500 “hardcore Maccabi supporters” who were “highly organised, uncooperative and militaristic” were accused of “indiscriminate attacks on Muslim taxi drivers, flag burning, marches and shouting Islamophobic slogans”.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry said: “Revelations about West Midlands Police behavior towards Maccabi fans are deeply shameful.
“There is a special term for the phenomenon of scapegoating Israelis and Jews while exonerating the real perpetrators, namely the jihadists who wanted to harm Jews. This is called antisemitism. Unfortunately, this is the reality in Britain today. There must be action and accountability for such actions.”
The Israeli Embassy in London declared: “The portrayal of Israeli fans as violent was a gross mischaracterization that served the needs of those actively agitating against an Israeli team.
“This framing diverted attention from credible intelligence warnings of extremist elements preparing to target Israeli and Jewish Maccabi supporters and instead placed blame on the community facing the threat.
“The decision to suppress these assessments and allow a misleading narrative to take hold raises serious questions.
“These actions by law enforcement undermine real security risks and even foster an environment in which hostility towards Israel and Jewish communities can be normalized under the rule of law.
“These issues require full responsibility.”
Mr Guildford called for a review of the decision to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv fans amid angry political protests.
The investigation, conducted 16 days before the match, concluded that a limited number of Israeli fans should be allowed.
The report, published by the Home Affairs Select Committee, said: “There is essentially no option but the least worst would be reduced allocation away fans or subject to ongoing discussions with the Government to continue the ban on away fans.”
Maccabi had already said many of their supporters would not attend the meeting because they feared for their safety in Birmingham.
The report reveals that police’s initial concern for security stemmed not from the behavior of Maccabi fans, but from high-confidence intelligence received on 5 September that “referred to elements of the West Midlands community seeking to ‘arm’ themselves”.
Deputy Chief Constable Mike O’Hara said: “We have a wealth of information and intelligence to suggest that people will actively seek out Maccabi Tel Aviv fans and seek violence against them.
“So we had kind of a simmering position locally.
“There were people online claiming to be Maccabi fans, provoking local community members and saying ‘this is what you’ll get’.
“This was all part of the heat of the situation, so commanders tried to make the right decision based on that.”
The crisis also threatens to engulf Interior Minister Shabana Mahmood.
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: “This scandal should never have happened. The Home Secretary must now make clear what he, ministers and the Home Office knew and when.”
“If the Home Secretary or ministers had known about this in advance, he would have had to explain why they did nothing to stop it.
“The Home Secretary has serious questions to answer.”
