London — British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has criticized a local U.K. authority’s decision to ban fans of an Israeli soccer team from coming to support their side. Starmer called the move by authorities in Birmingham, England, to block Maccabi Tel Aviv fans from attending an upcoming game against the city’s Aston Villa team a misstep.
“This is the wrong decision. We will not tolerate antisemitism on our streets. The role of the police is to ensure all football fans can enjoy the game, without fear of violence or intimidation,” Starmer said in a social media post on Friday.
A safety advisory group made up of authorities who give advice on welfare, health and safety for events in Birmingham made the decision to ban traveling Maccabi Tel Aviv fans from attending the November 6 match earlier this week.
U.K. police authorities supported the decision after classifying the game as a “high risk” public event.
The decision was made in line with “current intelligence and previous incidents, including violent clashes and hate crime offenses that occurred during the 2024 UEFA Europa League match between Ajax and Maccabi Tel-Aviv in Amsterdam,” said a statement Thursday from the West Midlands Police force, which covers Birmingham.
Following Starmer’s comments, West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner Simon Foster asked the Safety Advisory Group to review its decision to ban the Maccabi Tel Aviv fans.
“Any decision or recommendation, is ultimately a matter for the Birmingham City Council SAG and the independent, objective and impartial, operational policing judgment, of West Midlands Police,” Foster said.
The violence last year in Amsterdam cited by West Midlands police, which happened against the backdrop of the war in Gaza, drew global attention. Maccabi fans were among hundreds to march through central Amsterdam demonstrating in support of Israel before a game against the Dutch team Ajax. During the marches, flares were lit and Palestinian flags hung on some streets were torn down amid chants of “death to the Arabs” by some Maccabi Tel Aviv fans.
In the aftermath of that game, some local people in Amsterdam “actively sought out Israeli supporters to attack and assault them,” police authorities in the Netherlands said, sparking a furious reaction from the Israeli government. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the violence as a “premeditated antisemitic attack.”
Sixty-two people were arrested and five injured amid the unrest, Dutch police said at the time.
Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters do have a history of causing unrest at recent soccer games. A March report by an anti-racism group in Israel said the team’s fans were the most prolific in singing racist chants during games over the last league season, according to Israeli news outlet Ynet.
The decision to block Israeli visiting supporters also came just weeks after a deadly terror attack on a synagogue in the northeast England city of Manchester. Two Jewish men were killed and three others seriously injured during the attack, which happened on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish religious calendar.
Police later said one of the two victims was likely killed by police gunfire as officers raced to stop the suspect, who first rammed his car into people and then attacked with a knife outside the synagogue. Officers shot and killed the suspect, who investigators later identified as 35-year-old Jihad Al-Shamie, a British citizen of Syrian descent.
The ban on the Israeli soccer fans also comes in the wake of a suspected arson attack on a mosque in the town of Peacehaven, in southern Britain. Police said they are investigating that incident as a possible hate crime.
Birmingham, the U.K’s second largest city, has one of the largest Muslim populations in Britain.
