At least 25 killed as stampede, clashes with police break out during Egypt soccer game
PUBLISHED : Monday, 09 February, 2015, 10:27am
UPDATED : Monday, 09 February, 2015, 10:54am
Associated Press in Cairo
Soccer fans hold lit flares at the stand as they watch a match between Egyptian Premier League clubs Zamalek and ENPPI. A riot broke out outside the stadium reportedly over limited entry. Photo: AP
At least 25 people were killed when a riot and stampede broke out during of a major-league soccer match in Egypt, marked by clashes between police and spectators.
The riot started ahead of the game between Egyptian Premier League clubs Zamalek and ENPPI at the Air Defence Stadium, east of Cairo, yesterday.
Though the exact cause of the violence was not immediately clear, security officials said Zamalek fans tried to force their way into the match without tickets, sparking clashes.
Two security officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said at least 25 people were killed.
Zamalek fans, known as “White Knights”, posted on their group’s official Facebook page that the violence began because authorities only opened one narrow, barbed-wire door to let them in. They said that sparked pushing and shoving that later saw police officers fire tear gas and birdshot.
A health ministry official said some of the dead had suffered broken necks. An AFP correspondent outside the morgue saw coroner reports handed out saying two of those killed died of “extreme pressure to the chest”.
Many of those injured suffered broken bones and bruising, the health ministry said according to state news agency MENA.
Egyptian police (background in vehicle) block Egyptian Zamalek fans from trying to enter the stadium. Photo: EPA
The match continued despite the violence, provoking further outrage among the fans.
Zamalek defence player Omar Gaber was later suspended for refusing to play in the match in protest at the violence, a statement from his club said. “Because of these sad events it has been decided to postpone the league to a time that will be decided later,” it said in a statement.
A person who tried to attend the game, who spoke on condition of anonymity out of fear of being targeted by police, said that the stampede was caused by police who fired tear gas at the tightly packed crowd.
“Those who fell down could not get back up again,” the man said.
The Zamalek fan group later posted pictures on Facebook it claimed were of dead fans, including the names of 22 people it said had been killed. The information has yet to be verified.
Photos from the scene showed police vehicles set ablaze during the violence.
Fans have only recently been allowed back at matches and the Interior Ministry planned to let only 10,000 fans into the stadium, which has a capacity of about 30,000, the officials said.
The match between Zamalek and Enbi was open to the public, unlike most other games between Egyptian football clubs since deadly stadium riots in Port Said in 2012 that killed 74.
But the interior ministry had restricted to 10,000 the number of spectators allowed into the stadium on Sunday, and tickets quickly ran out.
Egypt’s hardcore soccer fans, known as Ultras, frequently clash with police inside and outside of stadiums. They are deeply politicised and many participated in the country’s 2011 uprising that forced out President Hosni Mubarak.
Soccer fans are seen near a police vehicle that was set on fire by fireworks during the clashes. Photo: Reuters
Many consider them as one of the most organised movements in Egypt after the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood, which the government later outlawed as a terrorist organisation following the 2013 military overthrow of Islamist President Mohammed Mursi.
State prosecutors said 14 bodies of those killed in the clashes had been taken to a morgue.
Sunday’s riot came only three years after similar violence killed 74 people. Such attacks in the past have sparked days of protests pitting the country’s hardcore fans against police officers in a nation already on edge after years of revolt and turmoil.
Egypt’s police are facing increasing scrutiny following the shooting death of a female protester in Cairo and the arrest of protesters under a law heavily restricting demonstrations.
President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi has pledged to bring stability to Egypt amid bombings and attacks by Islamic militants, but also has said Egypt’s emergency situation meant that some violations of human rights were inevitable, if regrettable.
Bereaved friends and family wait at the Zynhom morgue in Cairo. Egypt's hardcore soccer fans are heavily politicised and participated in the overthrow of Hosni Mubarak. Photo: AFP
Egypt’s public prosecutor issued a statement ordering an investigation. After convening an emergency meeting to discuss the violence, the cabinet announced that it was postponing upcoming soccer matches until further notice, Egypt’s state television said.
The deadliest riot in Egypt soccer history came during a 2012 match when Port Said’s Al-Masry team hosted Cairo’s Al-Ahly. That riot, at the time the deadliest worldwide since 1996, killed 74 people, mostly Al-Ahly fans.
Two police officers later received 15-year prison sentences for gross negligence and failure to stop the Port Said killings, a rare incident of security officials being held responsible for deaths in the country.
Seven other officers were acquitted, angering soccer fans who wanted more police officers to be held accountable for the incident and other episodes of violence.
In response, angry fans burned down the headquarters of Egypt’s Football Association, also protesting its decision to resume matches before bringing those behind that 2012 riot to justice.
They have also protested and fought officers outside of the country’s Interior Ministry, which oversees police in the country.
With additional reporting from AFP
