Police watchdog to investigate West Midlands Police ‘s Maccabi fan ban

The police watchdog says it may investigate West Midlands Police over its handling of the decision to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv fans from attending an Aston Villa game.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) told the BBC it could use its powers to investigate if the evidence available to us warrants it, but it needs to assess that evidence before determining its next steps.

The Sunday Times quoted its director, Rachel Watson, as saying that she was willing to use the watchdog’s “power of initiative” given the “sensitivity” of the matter.

Maccabi fans were banned from attending the 6 November match in Birmingham based on reports of hooliganism at other away games.

However, the government’s adviser to anti-Semitism has since said that some of the intelligence used by the force to make the decision was “inaccurate.”

Earlier this month, Lord Mann informed the Home Affairs Committee that they had altered some facts about earlier matches to align with the decision.

Police also faced criticism because two of its high-ranking officers appeared to repeat some of these inaccuracies before the committee.

Two high-ranking officers of West Midlands Police also faced criticism for seemingly repeating some of these inaccuracies before the committee.

The IOPC investigates cases that have been referred by individual police forces—usually when a police action results in someone’s death or a police officer is accused of a criminal offence.

Therefore, initiating one’s own investigation without a referral is relatively rare.

The IOPC is not yet investigating the force’s decision, but a spokesman said on Sunday, “It is right for public trust and police accountability to investigate the force’s involvement in the decision-making process.”

He noted that HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services was investigating the risk assessment carried out by West Midlands Police before the match and the extent to which the intelligence gathered “reflected the full information and intelligence picture.”

He said the home affairs committee has asked the force for “additional evidence” relating to the attendance at the committee of Chief Constable Craig Guildford and Assistant Chief Constable Mike O’Hara earlier this month.

“It is important for us to assess the evidence related to these processes before determining our next steps.”

An IOPC spokesperson said it had written to West Midlands Police and the region’s police and crime commissioner to “seek assurances as to what assessment they have made regarding any conduct”.

He said it was important to understand why a formal referral had not been made.

MPs had previously heard that the ban was based on information given to the force by Dutch police commanders regarding violence that broke out in Amsterdam during last year’s Europa League match between Ajax and Maccabi.

Subsequently, Dutch courts said that evidence showed that Israeli club fans faced violence, and they also reported that club supporters took down Palestinian flags, vandalised taxis, and shouted racist slogans against Arabs.

Despite West Midlands Police saying the decision was “not taken lightly”, senior MPs, including Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, said it amounted to anti-Semitism.

Lord Mann told the Home Affairs Committee that the West Midlands Police intelligence report contained a number of inaccuracies.

He said it referred to Maccabi fans “pulling down the Palestinian flag” on match day in the Netherlands, despite the incident having taken place the night before. It also mentioned a match between Maccabi and West Ham which never took place.

Force also had to apologise to ACC O’Hara; the committee repeatedly confirmed that representatives of the Jewish community had said that they did not want Maccabi fans. While in the match, he had not said any such thing.

This week, Maccabi Tel Aviv was fined €20,000 (£17,550) for “racist and/or discriminatory behaviour” by supporters during a game in Stuttgart, Germany, on December 11.

Fans were also given a suspended ban of one away match.