CAIRO – Security forces clashed Thursday with stone-throwing protesters enraged by the failure of police to prevent a soccer riot that killed 74 people, as sports violence spiraled into a new political crisis for Egypt.
The deaths Wednesday night in a post-match stadium riot in the Mediterranean city of Port Said fueled anger at Egypt’s ruling military and the already widely distrusted police forces. Many in the public and in the newly elected parliament blamed the leadership for letting it happen — whether from a lack of control or, as some alleged, on purpose.
Survivors of the riot described a nightmarish scene in the stadium. Police stood by doing nothing, they said, as fans of the winning home team, Al-Masry, attacked supporters of the top Cairo club, Al-Ahly, stabbing them and throwing them off bleachers.
A narrow exit corridor turned into a death trap as crowds of fans fled into it, only to be crushed against a locked gate as their rivals attacked them from behind.
A network of zealous Al-Ahly soccer fans known as Ultras vowed vengeance, accusing the police of intentionally letting rivals attack them because they have been among the most aggressive of Egypt’s revolutionaries. Ultras were at the forefront of
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