Tel Aviv Local Rivalry Cancelled Due to Violent Riots
Bloomfield Stadium in Tel Aviv was engulfed by haze before the scheduled start
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Issued
The domestic football league local clash featuring Maccabi Tel Aviv and their city rivals was called off before commencement on Sunday, following what authorities described as "civil unrest and major clashes".
"Dozens of smoke devices and pyrotechnic devices were set off," authorities posted on online platforms, emphasizing "this is not a football game, it constitutes chaos and serious violence".
A dozen individuals and multiple police personnel were harmed, officials confirmed, while nine people were taken into custody and numerous others held for interrogation.
The clashes come just days after representatives in the Britain announced that Maccabi Tel Aviv fans ought to be banned to go to the Europa League game at Aston Villa in the UK the following month because of public safety worries.
The local club criticised the match postponement, alleging authorities of "getting ready for a war, not a sporting event", including during talks in the lead-up to the much-expected encounter.
"The disturbing situations around the stadium and due to the reckless and unacceptable judgment to cancel the fixture only prove that the Israel Police has seized authority in the football," Hapoel Tel Aviv stated officially.
The other team has remained silent, except to confirm the fixture was abandoned.
The ruling by security authorities to ban the team's supporters from the English fixture on the sixth of November has triggered broad condemnation.
The UK government has subsequently stated it is working to overturn the ban and exploring what further support might be needed to ensure the match can be conducted securely.
Aston Villa told their security personnel that they could choose not to participate at the match, explaining they recognized that some "could be worried".
On earlier in the week, West Midlands Police said it endorsed the ban and designated the game as "high risk" due to intelligence and past events.
That involved "serious fights and hate-crime offences" involving Ajax and followers ahead of a fixture in the Netherlands in the previous year, when more than 60 people were taken into custody.
There have been demonstrations at multiple sporting events over the war in Gaza, for instance when Israel faced the Scandinavian team and Italy in recent qualification games.
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