Egypt: Football Violence Leaves Scores Dead

Cairo--At least 74 people are feared to have died in violent clashes between rival fans of two football teams following a match in the Egyptian city of Port Said.

Wednesday’s incident occurred after a match between Port Said’s al-Masry and Cairo’s al-Ahly in which the port city’s side won 3-1, prompting a post-match pitch invasion by fans who clashed.

At least 1000 people were reported to be injured as most deaths were among those people who were trampled in the wake of panic among the crowd or are believed to have fallen or thrown from terraces. Officials fear the death toll could rise further in what they termed to be the worst disaster in the country’s football history.

Lack of usual levels of security in the stadium has been on the clashes where it is reported that fans were armed with knives. Fighting is said to have begun after Ahli fans unfurled banners insulting the home side, where al-Masry fans poured onto the pitch and attacked Al Ahli players before turning to attack rival supporters.

 “I saw people holding machetes and knives. Some were hit with these weapons, other victims were flung from their seats, while the invasion happened,” Usama El Tafahni, a journalist in Port Said who attended the match, told Reuters news agency.

Head of the country’s military ruling council Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi on his address on state TV vowed full investigations into the incident, declaring three-days of national mourning.

“I deeply regret what happened at the football match in Port Said. I offer my condolences to the victims’ families,” Tantawi said.

His address did little to quell the angry protestors who were chanting slogans damning the military council.

Angry politicians have blamed the military leaders for allowing and even causing the tragedy but the Islamist group, Muslim brotherhood which dominates parliament have accused supporters of ousted leader Hosni Mubarak for the violence.

Al-Ahly fans also known as the “Ultras” are famed for their notoriety in violence and have been heavily implicated in several confrontations with the police, playing a significant role in staging protests in Cairo’s Tahrir Square, the heart of the uprising against Mubarak.

The club which is Egypt’s mostly famed and richest has said in a statement it was suspending all sporting activities in accordance with the declared mourning period. So far 47 people have been arrested in link to the violence.

Abuja, Nigeria

A Suspected Boko Haram Spokesman Arrested

Police in Nigeria say they have arrested a man said to be a spokesman of the Islamist militant group Boko Haram, blamed for the country’s recent spate of attacks.

Ahmed Abdullahi, Borno state director of the State Security Service (SSS) told Associated Press news agency on Wednesday that a man said to be 'Abu Qaqa', a pseudonym used by the spokesman, was captured in the north-eastern city of Maiduguri, in Borno state after police had tracked his mobile phone.

Police have declined to release identity of the man they say is a Nigerian citizen who had served as an intermediate linking the Islamic sect and journalists.

 "We are still taking to him. Since 'Abu Qaqa' is a pseudonym for the Boko Haram spokesman, we want to be sure of who we have with us. But we have been on his trail for months now. He's been changing locations and contacts," a source in the police told Reuters news agency.

Though his arrest has been highly welcomed, optimism still remains on whether how credible and important his capture was in lead to apprehension of other senior sect members.

Boko Haram which loosely translates to “western education is forbidden” has been responsible for a wave of attacks targeting the police and apparently Christian communities in northern and central Nigeria.

Most deadly attack by the group similarly modelled on Afghanistan’s Taliban, were those carried out last month in northern city of Kano, where coordinated bomb and gun attacks left at least 185 people dead.

More than 500 people were killed last year in attacks by the group which is fighting to instil Islamic “Sharia” laws across the multi-ethnic nation with a population of over 150 million people.