Saturday, 26 January 2013

21 Egyptian soccer fans sentenced to death



An Egyptian court has sentenced to death 21 defendants over clashes between rival football fans in which 74 people were killed last February.
The riots began minutes after a league game at Port Said stadium between local side al-Masry and Cairo club al-Ahly.
The violence – Egypt’s worst football disaster – sparked riots in Cairo during which a further 16 people died, BBC reports.
The sentences came after a day of clashes as the opposition marked the second anniversary of the revolution.
Last year’s football riots led to the suspension of the league.
It began when al-Masry fans invaded the pitch, hurling stones and fireworks at the visitors.
At the time some fans – who said security forces appeared to do little to prevent the clashes – accused supporters of toppled President Hosni Mubarak of instigating the incident.
At least 73 people, including policemen, were tried.
The judge said he would announce the verdict for the remaining 52 defendants on March 9.

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