Snipers on Roof before Soccer Games for Security

Both teams observed a minute's silence before the World Cup clash in Udine 

Snipers spotted on the roof of the Israel team hotel in Italy

Snipers were on the roof of the Israel team hotel in Udine and the Italian city was on maximum alert ahead of hosting a World Cup qualifier.

The Israel team bus was escorted to the stadium by 13 police vehicles, including some from the special forces, and several motorbikes. 

The sound of helicopters surveilling the city filled the air, hours before Italy's match against Israel was set to kick off Drones could also be spotted in the sky. 

The match had been placed in the highest risk category.

In the city centre, around 10,000 people attended a pro-Palestinian march. Then about 50 people - with their faces covered - started clashing with police, who used water cannons to disperse them.

Many shops and restaurants decided did not to open and there were strict rules for those that did - including the removal of any outdoor furniture or other objects that could potentially be used as weapons.

Running battles between protestors and police marred the build up to the match in Udine

Snipers were placed on the roof of the arena, too, as well as a hefty police and military presence. 

Italy had also played Israel a year ago in Udine, which was chosen because of the relative difficulty of reaching the city in north-east Italy, near the Slovenian border, and the ease of isolating the stadium, where road blocks were set up all around.

The area was been declared a 'red zone,' and only fans with tickets could pass through the tall metal barriers. Supporters were strongly advised to arrive early because of rigorous checks, with everyone having to pass through metal detectors also.

There was also a pro-Palestine demonstration last year, before that match.

Once the match started, both sets of players stood in the centre of the pitch and observed a minute's silence.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-15192445/Snipers-Israel-Italy-World-Cup-qualifier-police-water-canons.html

Italy won the game 3-0

UDINE, Italy — Israel lost hope of qualifying for next year’s soccer World Cup, after defeat by Italy in a game that took place with a heavy police presence that included snipers on the stadium roof.

Italy won 3-0 in a game that had been placed in the highest risk category.

There were skirmishes between protesters and police on the streets of Udine at a pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel demonstration before the match, but no serious disruptions during the game itself. However, stewards had to act quickly to prevent a couple of fans from running onto the field carrying Palestinian flags.

UK police block Israeli fans from Europa League game 

Local authorities in Birmingham barred Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters from attending their Europa League match against Aston Villa

Aston Villa banned visiting supporters from the game, scheduled for November 6 at Villa Park. 

"No away fans will be permitted to attend Villa Park for this fixture,” Aston Villa said in a statement.

West Midlands Police later issued their own statement confirming the classification of the match as a “high-risk” event.

The decision means Maccabi Tel Aviv fans will have to watch the game from afar, as their team faces the Premier League club in a key group stage encounter. 

A Muslim Birmingham MP who backed the Israeli football fan ban in the city was warmly praised at a mosque by a Muslim preacher who has urged followers to show 'no mercy' to Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters

Footage showed MP Ayoub Khan, a close ally of hard-Left former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, shaking hands with Muslim influencer Asrar Rashid at Lozells Central Mosque.

Asrar Rashid (above) praises MP Ayoub Khan at Lozells Central Mosque in Birmingham

Ayoub Khan is the pro-Hamas Independent MP for Birmingham

Preacher Asrar Rashid said "show no mercy" to Israeli fans when the match takes place at Villa Park

Maccabi Tel Aviv fans at a Europa League match at PAOK in Thessaloniki on September 24

Israel's deputy foreign minister Sharren Heskel told the Mail: 'For the past two years, the police have allowed tens of thousands of Muslims and left-wing activists to march through the streets of London supporting Hamas whilst chanting vile antisemitic slogans without consequence.

'Never once did they raise safety concerns for the Jewish community and cancel those disgraceful marches. The British government must intervene and overturn this shameful decision regarding Maccabi Tel Aviv.

'The double standards are appalling. West Midlands Police have admitted that we Jews are not safe in the second largest city in Britain — and that they cannot or will not protect us. This is a dangerous abdication of responsibility.'

Maccabi Tel Aviv superfan Gon Soussana, 32, told the Daily Mail 'It's crazy that Jewish football fans in 2025 can't come to the UK and watch their team.

'We are real Maccabi Tel Aviv football fans - and we saw what happened to us in Amsterdam last year and now we are being told that we are not allowed to come to England. This is insanity.'

He said it was a 'big red alarm' and people in the UK were 'losing your country'.

Emily Damari, a British-Israeli who was held captive by Hamas for more than a year before being released in January, and who supports football teams Maccabi Tel Aviv and Tottenham Hotspur, said the decision to ban Israeli fans was 'outrageous'.

She said: 'I am shocked to my core with this outrageous decision to ban me, my family and my friends from attending an Aston Villa game in the UK.

'Football is a way of bringing people together irrespective of their faith, colour or religion, and this disgusting decision does the exact opposite. Shame on you. I hope you come to your senses and reconsider.

'I do wonder what exactly has become of UK society. This is like putting a big sign on the outside of a stadium saying: 'No Jews allowed'.

'What has become of the UK where blatant antisemitism has become the norm? What a sad world we are living in.'

The Jewish Leadership Council also criticised the decision, saying: 'It is perverse that away fans should be banned from a football match because West Midlands Police can't guarantee their safety.

'Aston Villa should face the consequences of this decision and the match should be played behind closed doors.'

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said the move 'takes racial discrimination to a whole new level'.

Criticism also came from Israel, with Mr Sa'ar saying: 'I call on the UK authorities to reverse this cowardly decision.'

However Iqbal Mohamed, independent MP for Dewsbury & Batley, said on X: 'Thank you all who put the safety of Aston Villa fans, Birmingham residents and the British public above the Zionists and political pressure to let Israeli hooligans and terrorists run riot in our country.'

And the Green Party's deputy leader Mothin Ali said the Prime Minister's objection to banning Maccabi Tel Aviv fans was 'irresponsible'.

Mr Ali also called for 'a sporting and cultural boycott of all Israeli teams'.

The Palestine Solidarity Campaign had called for the match to be cancelled, saying on X: 'Israeli football teams shouldn't play in international tournaments.'

The Youth Front For Palestine group said: 'This victory is a clear example of pressure working, of the importance of action and unity in fighting against the Zionist entity.'

But Simon Johnson, former COO of the Football Association and former CEO of the Jewish Leadership Council, told GB News: 'I think it is a cowardly and shameful decision and it amounts to mob rule.'

'To see the local MP crowing about this just shows that the mob has won, and I think that it is a decision that this country should be very ashamed of.'

West Midlands Police said that Israeli fans would not be allowed to come to the game between Aston Villa and Maccabi Tel Aviv next month

Local ‘Independent’ MP, Ayoub Khan, pictured, worked with ex-Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn to organise a petition to have the match called off

Let's be clear, a group of fans have been banned from attending a match on the basis of their nationality

Hezbollah Terrorist Dyab Abou Jahjah, pictured brandishing a Kalashnikov machine gun, helped compile the dossier which led to Maccabi Tel Aviv fans being banned from a Europa League match against Aston Villa

Fans of Israeli club Maccabi Tel Aviv have been banned from watching their team at Aston Villa

Labour home secretary Shabana Mahmood (pictured), a devout Muslim, had been personally warned of the impending decision a week before it was finalised and did not object

The Aston Villa Jewish Villans supporters’ club said: ‘In the summer of 1938, on a tour of Germany, the name Aston Villa became famous around the world as the only visiting team who refused an official request to perform the Nazi salute prior to kick-off. Today, the same club have been forced by the local authorities to salute modern-day Nazism.’