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| Egypt port hit by lethal riots after football fans given death sentence | Egypt port hit by lethal riots after football fans given death sentence |
| (12 days later) | |
| At least 30 people were killed and 250 injured in Port Said on Saturday during riots sparked by a court's decision to sentence to death 21 football fans for their role in a massacre at a match in the Egyptian city a year ago. | At least 30 people were killed and 250 injured in Port Said on Saturday during riots sparked by a court's decision to sentence to death 21 football fans for their role in a massacre at a match in the Egyptian city a year ago. |
| Troops were deployed and rail services suspended after furious relatives attacked a police station and a prison in an attempt to free some of those condemned. Police used teargas, rubber bullets and live ammunition as fans rampaged through the city. Angry fans and relatives also blocked a major road and disrupted ferry services. | Troops were deployed and rail services suspended after furious relatives attacked a police station and a prison in an attempt to free some of those condemned. Police used teargas, rubber bullets and live ammunition as fans rampaged through the city. Angry fans and relatives also blocked a major road and disrupted ferry services. |
| The carnage followed widespread civil unrest on Friday, which saw hundreds of thousands of Egyptians mount violent protests against the president, Mohamed Morsi. | The carnage followed widespread civil unrest on Friday, which saw hundreds of thousands of Egyptians mount violent protests against the president, Mohamed Morsi. |
| The trial of the 21 condemned men was sparked by the death last February of 74 football fans in a riot following a match between Al Masry, a Port Said team, and Al Ahly, from Cairo. Moments after Al Masry had won 3-1, Al Masry fans chased the players from the pitch and attacked those in the Al Ahly stands – sparking what the deputy health minister called "the biggest disaster in Egypt's soccer history". The entire league was suspended for the rest of the year, while this season's games will begin behind closed doors. | The trial of the 21 condemned men was sparked by the death last February of 74 football fans in a riot following a match between Al Masry, a Port Said team, and Al Ahly, from Cairo. Moments after Al Masry had won 3-1, Al Masry fans chased the players from the pitch and attacked those in the Al Ahly stands – sparking what the deputy health minister called "the biggest disaster in Egypt's soccer history". The entire league was suspended for the rest of the year, while this season's games will begin behind closed doors. |
| Al Masry fans feel they have been made scapegoats by the security forces. Some claim security officials instigated, or at least did nothing to stop, the attack, due to a long-running antipathy between the club's hardcore fans – known as Ultras – and the police. | Al Masry fans feel they have been made scapegoats by the security forces. Some claim security officials instigated, or at least did nothing to stop, the attack, due to a long-running antipathy between the club's hardcore fans – known as Ultras – and the police. |
| By Saturday afternoon in Port Said more people had been killed in the aftermath of the verdict than sentenced to death by the court. The death toll in the past two days was at least 39. | By Saturday afternoon in Port Said more people had been killed in the aftermath of the verdict than sentenced to death by the court. The death toll in the past two days was at least 39. |
| But in Cairo the mood could not have been more different. There was joyful pandemonium in the courtroom as judge Sobhy Abdel Maguid read out the verdict, which was broadcast on national television. Relatives of those killed last year leaped screaming to their feet, jumping up and down, and brandishing large portraits of the dead. | But in Cairo the mood could not have been more different. There was joyful pandemonium in the courtroom as judge Sobhy Abdel Maguid read out the verdict, which was broadcast on national television. Relatives of those killed last year leaped screaming to their feet, jumping up and down, and brandishing large portraits of the dead. |
| Jubilant and unforgiving Al Ahly fans also created a carnival atmosphere outside their stadium on Zamalek, an island in the middle of the Nile. Thousands of fans gathered from 8am, blocking off the street that leads to the stadium, singing songs, waving huge flags, beating drums, and setting off flares and fireworks. A few fans from Zamalek, Al Ahly's arch-rivals in Cairo who share the same ground, also gathered in solidarity. | Jubilant and unforgiving Al Ahly fans also created a carnival atmosphere outside their stadium on Zamalek, an island in the middle of the Nile. Thousands of fans gathered from 8am, blocking off the street that leads to the stadium, singing songs, waving huge flags, beating drums, and setting off flares and fireworks. A few fans from Zamalek, Al Ahly's arch-rivals in Cairo who share the same ground, also gathered in solidarity. |
| "I feel very happy, very relieved," Al Ahly fan Salha el-Deen said, holding a sign reading: "Congratulations on your execution, Port Said". He said: "I thank the judiciary for this very fair decision." Another fan said: "What happened a year ago was very sad. Today is a turning point, a new dawn for everyone." | "I feel very happy, very relieved," Al Ahly fan Salha el-Deen said, holding a sign reading: "Congratulations on your execution, Port Said". He said: "I thank the judiciary for this very fair decision." Another fan said: "What happened a year ago was very sad. Today is a turning point, a new dawn for everyone." |
| Yet some Al Ahly fans were still furious at the failure to convict any senior security officials. Like their Al Masry counterparts, Al Ahly fans allege the police were either involved in the deaths or failed to intervene – in revenge, they claimed, for the Al Ahly Ultras' role in the 2011 revolution which saw the overthrow of the president, Hosni Mubarak. "We are angry, but hope more will be convicted in the future," said another fan, who did not give his name. | Yet some Al Ahly fans were still furious at the failure to convict any senior security officials. Like their Al Masry counterparts, Al Ahly fans allege the police were either involved in the deaths or failed to intervene – in revenge, they claimed, for the Al Ahly Ultras' role in the 2011 revolution which saw the overthrow of the president, Hosni Mubarak. "We are angry, but hope more will be convicted in the future," said another fan, who did not give his name. |
| On Friday, hundreds of thousands of Egyptians took to the streets across the country to protest against Morsi and his Islamist allies. At least seven were killed and 379 injured in clashes in 12 of Egypt's 27 provinces, as protesters sacked state institutions and Muslim Brotherhood offices in several cities. | On Friday, hundreds of thousands of Egyptians took to the streets across the country to protest against Morsi and his Islamist allies. At least seven were killed and 379 injured in clashes in 12 of Egypt's 27 provinces, as protesters sacked state institutions and Muslim Brotherhood offices in several cities. |
| Worried that the verdict would not appease Al Ahly supporters, Cairo residents had braced themselves for more carnage in the capital. | Worried that the verdict would not appease Al Ahly supporters, Cairo residents had braced themselves for more carnage in the capital. |
| Al Ahly Ultras had already brought central Cairo to a standstill on Wednesday. In an attempt to influence the court's decision, the Ultras blocked off parts of Cairo's metro system and road networks, and surrounded the Egyptian stock exchange. "Beware of our anger: justice or blood," the group wrote on their Facebook page on Friday, creating the impression that, whatever the judges' verdict, at least Cairo and Port Said would see some trouble. | Al Ahly Ultras had already brought central Cairo to a standstill on Wednesday. In an attempt to influence the court's decision, the Ultras blocked off parts of Cairo's metro system and road networks, and surrounded the Egyptian stock exchange. "Beware of our anger: justice or blood," the group wrote on their Facebook page on Friday, creating the impression that, whatever the judges' verdict, at least Cairo and Port Said would see some trouble. |
| Fifty-two defendants – including nine policemen – have yet to be sentenced for their part in the massacre, while those convicted can still appeal. | Fifty-two defendants – including nine policemen – have yet to be sentenced for their part in the massacre, while those convicted can still appeal. |
| In an effort to deal with the situation, Morsi cancelled a trip to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Saturday. | In an effort to deal with the situation, Morsi cancelled a trip to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Saturday. |
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