AT LEAST 22 PEOPLE are reported to have been killed during violent clashes ahead of an Egyptian league game on Sunday.
The country’s state media reported that over a dozen have been left dead supporters of Zamalek fought with police after turning up for a match against ENPPI at Cairo’s Air Defence Stadium without tickets.
The Egyptian interior ministry has claimed that people tried to storm the ground and the violence was sparked by police trying to protect harm befalling the surrounding area.
“The Zamalek fans tried to get in by force, and we had to prevent them from damaging public property,” a statement from the government claimed.
Zamalek fan group Ultras White Knights disputed the ministry’s account, however, alleging that fans were tear-gassed as they scrambled to get in the stadium, with a “tiny metal fence surrounded by barbed wire being the only gate opened for us”.
The death toll has been claimed by the supporter group to be at 22, though the figure has been rising.
This is the latest fatal outbreak of violence at an Egyptian league game, with the last one occurring in February 2012 when over 70 Al-Ahly supporters were killed during a riot started by Al-Masry fans in Port Said.
Since that ban, heavy restrictions on football crowds have been in place. For instance, on Sunday only 10,000 tickets were made available for Zamalek’s game with ENPPI.
