Egypt probes deadly football riot amid new protests
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E-mail Xinhua, February 3, 2012
Egypt's prosecution authorities began on Thursday an investigation into a deadly football riot which killed 74 and injured hundreds amid new protests against police.
Attorney General Abdel-Meguid Mahmoud and his two aides on Thursday inspected the Port Said Stadium, the scene of the clashes between fans of two rival teams on Wednesday night upon the end of a premier league match, the official MENA news agency reported.
The top prosecutor ordered TV satellite channels or individuals who shot the match hand over their video tapes, the report added.
The Interior Ministry said 47 people have been arrested after the riot.
Hussein Tantawi, head of the military council, has ordered the formation of a fact-finding committee to probe the clashes in the Port Said Stadium. He said police should be responsible for the security of games.
Meanwhile, new clashes erupted on Thursday between protestors and police in Cairo and Suez.
Clashes between Egyptian riot police and protestors in Cairo have left 388 people injured on Thursday night, state TV reported.
Security forces fired tear gas at protestors to prevent them from reaching the Interior Ministry building near Tahrir Square. The protestors chanted slogans against police and held them accountable for allowing fans to enter the stadium with sticks and knives.
On Friday, a big rally is called for in Cairo, which makes the country face fresh protests due to the latest violent event.
The ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) announced a three-day national mourning over the incident from Thursday to Saturday.
The military council held an emergency meeting on Thursday to discuss the handling of the most tragic event in the country's football history.
The military also condemned the criticism against them after the riot occurred.
Prime Minister Kamal el-Ganzouri on Thursday sacked Port Said Governor Mohamed Abdel Hashem. Provincial security chief Essam Samak and the board of the Egyptian Football Association were also fired.
At an emergency session of the People's Assembly (lower house of parliament) over the riot, Ganzouri extended deep condolences to the Egyptian people over the incident. He said he shouldered the political responsibility for the violence and was ready to face any investigation.
On Wednesday night, fans rushed to the Port Said Stadium field where el-Masry, a Port Said team, beat the most popular national team el-Ahly three to one.
Many fans entered the stadium with sticks in their hands and supporters of the two rival teams started fighting each other. Two Ahly players are reportedly slightly injured in the clash.
The riot was caused by some insulting posters carried by the Ahly fans, Nile TV reported.
SCAF chief Hussein Tantawi ordered two military helicopters to Port Said to transfer the players, fans and the injured to the capital Cairo.
The premier league has been postponed indefinitely due to the incident.
Nabil Abdel Fatah, an expert with the Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies, said the country's security bodies were affected badly after last year's Jan. 25 mass protests.
"The assumption that a third party or hidden hands caused the incidents is just a bid to cover the interior ministry's failure to secure the citizens," he said.
Mohammed AlBaradei, former chief of the UN nuclear watchdog, denounced the incident on his twitter account, saying all security bodies in Egypt should be restructured and any delay in this regard is "a betrayal to the nation".
Egypt's Stock Exchange suffered heavy losses on Thursday, due to the impact of the Port Said football riot. Benchmark EGX 30 index fell 4.6 percent.
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