Riot before Egyptian match
The game at Cairo’s Air Defence Stadium was between Zamalek and ENPPI of the Egyptian Premier League. Security officials said many fans tried to gain entry without a ticket. However fans of Zamalek said there was only one door with barbed wire on it, leading down a single, narrow tunnel.
That, they said, lead to chaos and a rush to get through. However fans said police fired birdshot and teargas at fans, creating more chaos in the midst of the stampede that had broken out. Some fans said the teargas caused many to fall down and that once down most were unable to get back up and were crushed to death. It is not uncommon for rabid soccer fans in the country, called “Ultras,” to clash with police and security officials.
The latest reports today say that after convening an emergency cabinet meeting the Egyptian government has temporarily suspended further league play. There had been bans on crowds recently lifted after a soccer riot in Port Said three years ago that left some 74 dead.
2012 Port Said soccer riots
Three years ago, in February of 2012, Egypt was badly shaken by that soccer riot in Port Said after a match had completed. The country went into three days of official mourning after that tragedy and many blamed lax security. Steps were taken to increase safety at matches but Sunday’s stampede suggests those steps were not adequate.
“This is not football,” a player, Mohamed Abo Treika told media during the 2012 riot. “This is a war and people are dying in front of us. There is no movement and no security and no ambulances. This is a horrible situation and today can never be forgotten.”
Today, the Egyptian interior ministry released a statement blaming fans:
“Huge numbers of Zamalek club fans came to Air Defense Stadium to attend the match,” the statement read. “And tried to storm the stadium gates by force, which prompted the troops to prevent them from continuing the assault.”
