Egypt suspends soccer league after deadly pregame melee


On Sunday night, the cabinet of Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi indefinitely suspended Egypt's national soccer league, hours after at least 25 soccer fans were killed during a confrontation with police at a suburban Cairo stadium. The dead were hard-core fans, or Ultras, of the Zamalek Club. The death toll is expected to rise.
After a deadly 2012 riot at a soccer game in Port Said, in which 74 people died, Egypt largely shut fans out of the games; for Sunday's match, they sold only 5,000 tickets. Ticketless fans gathered outside anyway, and Egypt's interior minister originally said "the Zamalek fans tried to get in by force, and we had to prevent them from damaging public property." State media later blamed the deaths on "a stampede" when more than 6,000 Ultras "tried to break in." The Zamalek fans, or White Knights, say police incited the stampede by firing tear gas into a crowded corridor jammed with fans.
Ultras were often in the front lines of the protests that ultimately unseated President Hosni Mubarak, and are known for their run-ins with police. These deaths are a real black eye for Sissi, soccer blogger James M. Dorsey tells The New York Times. "It becomes increasingly difficult to argue that you have re-established security and law and order when you can't afford to open the stadiums," he said, adding that authoritarian government have a particularly hard time consulting soccer stadiums. The Associated Press has some images of the incident below. —Peter Weber
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
What does 'conquering' Gaza mean to Israel?
Today's Big Question Benjamin Netanyahu's cabinet has approved a plan to displace much of the Palestinian population while seizing and occupying the territory on a long-term basis.
-
Casey Means: the controversial 'wellness influencer' nominated for surgeon general
In the Spotlight Means has drawn controversy for her closeness to RFK Jr.
-
Trump taps Fox News' Pirro for DC attorney post
speed read The president has named Fox News host Jeanine Pirro to be the top federal prosecutor for Washington, replacing acting US Attorney Ed Martin
-
Shakespeare not an absent spouse, study proposes
speed read A letter fragment suggests that the Shakespeares lived together all along, says scholar Matthew Steggle
-
New Mexico to investigate death of Gene Hackman, wife
speed read The Oscar-winning actor and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their home with no signs of foul play
-
Giant schnauzer wins top prize at Westminster show
Speed Read Monty won best in show at the 149th Westminster Kennel Club dog show
-
Beyoncé, Kendrick Lamar take top Grammys
Speed Read Beyoncé took home album of the year for 'Cowboy Carter' and Kendrick Lamar's diss track 'Not Like Us' won five awards
-
The Louvre is giving 'Mona Lisa' her own room
Speed Read The world's most-visited art museum is getting a major renovation
-
Honda and Nissan in merger talks
Speed Read The companies are currently Japan's second and third-biggest automakers, respectively
-
Taylor Swift wraps up record-shattering Eras tour
Speed Read The pop star finally ended her long-running tour in Vancouver, Canada
-
Drake claims illegal boosting, defamation
Speed Read The rapper accused Universal Music of boosting Kendrick Lamar's diss track and said UMG allowed him to be falsely accused of pedophilia