By David Gold
February 1 – Thousands have been injured and 73 people have died tonight in clashes between rival fans of al-Ahly and Masry in the Egyptian Premier League, which has been indefinitely suspended as a result.
It is thought to be the worst football related disaster in Egyptian history, and it happened after Masry secured a shock 3-1 win against al-Ahly, one of the country’s biggest teams, in Port Said.
Egypt has been afflicted by increasing violence at football matches since the deposing of Hosni Mubarak as the country’s leader a year ago.
Al-Ahly’s fans have a history of violence, but according to reports at the end of the match it was Masry supporters who descended onto the pitch and attacked rival fans and players, forcing them to run for cover.
The Egyptian Parliament is to hold an emergency session to discuss the violence tomorrow at 11am.
Egypt’s military ruler, Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, who took power when Mubarak was ousted by a popular uprising in February, has sent two military planes to Port Said to fly out the players and the injured, state television reported.
The Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt’s largest political force, accused Mubarak supporters of instigating the violence.
“The events in Port Said are planned and are a message from the remnants of the former regime,” said MP Essam al-Erian in a statement on the Islamist group’s Freedom and Justice Party website.
Mohamed Abou-Treika, one of Egypt’s best players of recent years, told a television station that “this is not football…this is war”, and that “the security forces left us, they did not protect us.
“One fan has just died in the dressing room in front of me.”
Port Said’s El-Amiry Hospital manager Hassan Esnawy said that there were 11 deaths at his hospital alone, and that there had been at least 28 other casualties as a result of suffocation and being stamped on.
Tension had been building ahead of the match before the game, at which point Al-Ahly were second in the table, one behind leaders Harras El-Hodoud.
In the capital itself, a fire broke out at Cairo Stadium during the first half of a match between Zamalek and Ismaili clubs, prompting officials to cancel the fixture.
Emergency services managed to bring the blaze under control, a security official said.
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