Major police operation ahead of Maccabi Tel Aviv-Aston Villa match

A major police operation is under way as protests are expected ahead of the controversial Aston Villa match against Maccabi Tel Aviv.

More than 700 officers will be on the streets of Birmingham for the Uefa Europa League match, which kicks off at 20:00 GMT, amid expected protests, alongside police horses, dogs, drones and roads units.

Officers were deployed to the city centre by 13:30, amid reports of some protesters arriving early.

Last month, the decision to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv fans from the game was the focus of parliamentary-level debate and has led to MPs questioning West Midlands Police about the move.

Ahead of the game, those living and working in the city near Villa Park saw shops and schools close early.

Meanwhile, Jewish Villa fan Elliot Ludvig said he was apprehensive about attending the match.

Mr Ludvig, who will be there with his son, told the BBC: “I’m apprehensive about what’s going to happen. I’m apprehensive about the potential for violence for one thing.

“I’m apprehensive about various unpleasantries that we might encounter along the way, both outside the stadium and inside the stadium.”

He said his other major emotion was “disappointment”.

“Is it worth going to a football game to potentially put myself at some sort of risk and or expose my son to to all sorts of unpleasantries which you might not want to?,” he asked.

Those who called for calm included one fan group, the Punjabi Villans, which urged people to respect each other and for everyone to get home safely, posting on social media: “We’re in this together. Football unites us.”

On Wednesday night, the chief executive of Maccabi Tel Aviv said it was “incredibly sad” his side’s fans could not be there, adding: “Politics should never be drawn into football.”

Planned protests include two by supporters of Palestine, who have been calling for the match to be called off.

The BBC has also been told a Maccabi Solidarity Rally has also been organised to coincide with the match.

On Monday, Naeem Malik, chair of West Midlands Palestine Solidarity Campaign, said there had been national outrage over the hosting of the Israeli team.

“The calls to cancel this match have been ignored despite the risks that it carries, therefore we must urge activists to unite in protest against this match,” he said.

Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Stop the War Coalition, Muslim Association of Britain, Friends of Al-Aqsa, Kashmir solidarity campaign and Palestinian Forum in Britain had called for the match to be cancelled and jointly organised one of the protests.