red. on Nostr: https://void.cat/d/2VQFzbXJMzBeqXzYAbC4S3.webp The Port Said stadium massacre, the ...

The Port Said stadium massacre, the “darkest day in Egypt’s football history,” which sparked massive anti-government protests, erupted today 12 years ago. Here is what happened.

The rival teams Al Masry and Al Ahly faced off in Port Said in 2012 when thousands of armed Al Masry fans attacked Al Ahly’s tribune, killing at least 74 people. Many of the deaths were due to police refusal to open the stadium gates.

In the following days, large-scale civil unrest broke out, including a general strike demanding the resignation of the ruling military council.

Many believed that the police orchestrated this massacre to retaliate for the humiliation suffered at the hands of the ultras, which spearheaded and fought off the police during the 2011 Egyptian Revolution.

Almost exactly one year earlier, regime supporters tried to crush the protest in Tahrir Square during the Egyptian Revolution protests. Football ultras were at the frontline, protecting protesters in Tahrir Square during the unrest.

The Al Ahly Ultras Association was known for its passionate revolutionary chants, which were sung in Tahrir Square during the revolution and its aftermath.

Seventy-three defendants, including nine police officers and two officials from Port Said’s Al-Masry club, were charged in the aftermath of the massacre and given ten death sentences.

In 2015, a Cairo court designated all ultra-groups in Egypt as terrorist organizations, and they were outlawed. Dozens of ultras from different clubs have since been detained, with ex-Ahly and national team star Mohamed Aboutrika added to Egypt’s state terrorism list.

#UA07 #JFT74 #Egypt

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