JERUSALEM:

Maccabi Tel Aviv will decline any tickets offered to their fans for a away match at Aston Villa, the Israeli club announced Monday.

The local Safety Advisory Group (SAG) covering Villa Park in Birmingham, in central England, last week blocked visiting fans from attending the November 6 match following a police risk assessment.

That decision drew widespread political criticism, including from UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, with widespread calls for the ruling to be reversed.

The British government said Friday it was working to allow Israeli fans to attend.

But a statement on the Maccabi Tel Aviv website said: "The wellbeing and safety of our fans is paramount and, from hard lessons learned, we have taken the decision to decline any allocation offered on behalf of away fans,

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