Banning Israeli fans from Birmingham shows extremists their threats work

Jews and Israelis were hunted down and attacked in the streets simply for being Jews and Israelis. Masked men kicked and punched Israelis as they lay unconscious and defenceless.

“I’m not Jewish,” pleaded one fan, before he was hit in the face. Another offered his attackers money in a desperate attempt to escape further abuse.

This was no ordinary football hooliganism; it was antisemitic mob violence in a European capital.

It’s no wonder that West Midlands Police want to prevent similar scenes from happening in Birmingham when Maccabi Tel Aviv visit Aston Villa on Thursday. But it is perverse that away fans should be banned from a football match because West Midlands Police can't guarantee their safety.

Instead of reassuring the public that Britain will protect people regardless of their race, nationality or religion, the message sent was clear: if you are Israeli, Britain can not protect you and may even exclude you for your own good.

Local politicians have stoked tensions between communities for political gain. In a sickening moral inversion, Aston’s independent Member of Parliament, Ayoub Khan, twisted what happened in Amsterdam to suggest Maccabi Tel Aviv fans should be banned from the UK.

Instead of calling out those who attacked innocent supporters, he chose to blame the victims. Worse, he has done damage to the community he supposedly represents by giving the impression that they would be unable to receive Jewish and Israeli fans peacefully.

West Midlands Police and the Safety Advisory Group decided to give in to those who wish to further division through threats of intimidation and violence, without considering what that would say about our country.

To ban Maccabi Tel Aviv fans from Birmingham simply because they are Israeli would be widely condemned as xenophobia if they were from any other country. And with protests due to take place despite the ban on away fans, it has become clear this was never about public order.

Despite welcome attempts by the government to reverse this decision, Maccabi Tel Aviv eventually declined to take up its allocation.

As a result, we are likely to see two scenes on Thursday night. Inside the stadium, Aston Villa fans will support their team, as football brings together players from across the world. They will likely be ashamed of the characterisation of their city as a place where such an event should be remarkable.

Outside, those who wish to further division will gather to reject the very presence of an Israeli team.

Following the deadly attack on Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation in Manchester on Yom Kippur, it would be an understatement to say that Britain has failed its Jewish community. Jews were attacked and murdered on our holiest day of the year for no reason other than that they were Jewish.

The message sent by the decision to ban Tel Aviv fans is that it would be easier to placate those who wish us harm than take the action needed to allow us to go about our lives safely.

We have faced more than two years of extremist rhetoric and unchecked antisemitism on our streets, on campus, in the media, in our workplaces, in the NHS and online.

Britain must reject intimidation, uphold equal protection under the law, and make clear that Jewish lives and Israeli lives are not expendable for the sake of convenience.

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Russell Langer is Director of Public Affairs at the Jewish Leadership Council.

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