Six people were arrested during protests outside Villa Park on Thursday after Maccabi Tel Aviv fans were banned on safety grounds from attending the Europa League match, sparking intense controversy.

Axar.az informs, citing Guardian, a large Pro-Palestine demonstration took place in the shadow of Aston Villa’s stadium, with protesters calling for the match to be cancelled and for Israeli teams to be banned from multinational competitions.

A smaller counter-demonstration took place at the away end of the stadium to oppose the ban and to “stand in solidarity with Maccabi fans”. As they made their way to the stadium, officers directed them to hold their protest in a caged basketball court.

More than 700 police officers were in attendance, along with police dogs, police horses and a drone unit. A section 60 was also in place in parts of Birmingham, allowing officers to stop and search without the need to have reasonable grounds.

West Midlands police said three people were arrested for racially aggravated offences and one for a breach of the peace. A man, 21, was also arrested for failing to comply with an order to remove a face mask and a boy, 17, for failing to comply with a dispersal order.