Pro Palestine activists discussed plans to monitor and obstruct Israeli footballers from Maccabi Tel Aviv ahead of their scheduled match against Aston Villa, amid claims that West Midlands Police failed to act on intelligence warning of a threat to the visiting team.
Messages seen by The Telegraph from a group chat linked to the West Midlands Palestine Solidarity Campaign outlined efforts to prevent the fixture at Villa Park on November 6 from going ahead. Participants discussed searching hotel lobbies and dining areas in Birmingham to locate Maccabi players, to disrupt their attendance at the match.
One message urged volunteers to take part in what were described as “mission-critical search actions”, including identifying players from images on the club’s website and acting as spotters around the stadium. Activists proposed monitoring Villa Park entrances for the team coach, following players back to their hotels, and mobilising protests at those locations to obstruct the match.
The revelations have intensified scrutiny of Craig Guildford, the West Midlands chief constable, who is already under pressure over his decision last year to ban Maccabi supporters from attending the game. Critics argue the ban was politically motivated rather than grounded in genuine safety concerns, and accuse Mr Guildford of misleading Parliament while downplaying threats against Israeli players and fans.
The Telegraph reports that pro-Gaza activists attempted to track the team the night before the match, despite police assertions at the time that Maccabi supporters themselves posed the primary risk of disorder.
Lord Austin, a Labour peer and prominent campaigner against antisemitism, described the policing of the match as a “complete disgrace” and said Mr Guildford and his senior team should be dismissed. He argued that the real threat came from local extremists and that the police ignored this, blamed Israelis, and subsequently misrepresented events to the Jewish community, the media and Parliament.
Nick Timothy, a Conservative MP, said police ignored intelligence indicating a threat from armed Islamists against Israeli fans and instead fabricated a justification for banning them.
Previously disclosed documents showed that police had been warned that some locals in predominantly Muslim areas were planning to arm themselves if Maccabi fans attended. Officers later acknowledged awareness of plots by vigilante groups targeting Israeli supporters, but cited that risk as grounds for excluding Maccabi fans rather than confronting the threat.
This week, Sir Andy Cooke is expected to submit a report on West Midlands Police’s handling of the ban. Mr Guildford and around 20 other witnesses have been interviewed, with hundreds of documents reviewed. The findings relating to the football ban are due to be handed shortly to Shabana Mahmood, whose response could prove decisive for Mr Guildford’s future. Reports suggest she may declare a lack of confidence in him if the conclusions are strongly critical.
Separately, The Telegraph highlights a similar controversy involving Mr Guildford during his tenure as Assistant Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police in 2013. As gold commander for a match between Hull City and Huddersfield Town, he imposed strict restrictions on away supporters based on intelligence predicting violence. The measures, later criticised as excessive, led to protests and an apology from the force following an external review.
Critics argue the parallels between that incident and the Villa Park ban are striking, and some MPs and antisemitism campaigners, including Sir Keir Starmer, have criticised the decision to exclude Israeli fans, describing it as discriminatory and driven by Islamist pressure.
A spokesperson for the West Midlands Palestine Solidarity Campaign said the message had been deleted and did not reflect the group’s views or activities. West Midlands Police declined to comment.
