Denials abound as riots engulf Egypt
Joseph Mayton20 November 2009 in Egypt, Featured, News
CAIRO: Salem Ebeid continued shaking his head, even after footage of the damage and destruction on Cairo’s streets were placed in front of him. He said nothing of the sort had happened and this was the media’s attempt to foment “things that aren’t real.” No more than ten paces from where his fruit stand stood were dozens of Egyptian riot police, lining a barrier in front of the Algerian Embassy in Cairo. Tension reached a tipping point on Thursday night and violence ensued.
“No way, there was nothing going on. It is just a precaution that there are soldiers here. They’ve been here since before the match,” Ebeid told Bikya Masr on Friday evening, as around a dozen streets in the upper-class Zamalek neighborhood remained shut down after crazed Egyptian fans attacked, set fire and bludgeoned in windows of shops surrounding the Algerian Embassy. It was a response, they said, to Egyptian fans being attacked in Algeria and Sudan after the two teams played on Wednesday for the final spot in the World Cup.
Algeria won, but by the response of Egyptians, it would seem otherwise. After many victories, Egyptians take to the streets, waving flags and cheering on their national team. This time, it was following a loss that has left the Egyptians outside next year’s World Cup in South Africa.
Near a major supermarket in the Zamalek enclave, a poster of what appeared to be an Algerian flag with anti-Algerian slogans painted across lay on the ground. “Run over the Algerians,” one man yelled at passing vehicles. “They don’t deserve our respect,” screamed another.
It was a sign of how far tensions between the Egyptians and the Algerians had gotten. Already, the Algerian Embassy had been firebombed and stones thrown at it. Violence between fans and police reached a tipping point in the early hours of Friday in clashes that left at least 11 police injured and fans forcibly turned away from the area.
But, it didn’t stop Egyptians from trying again on Friday afternoon, shortly after the noon prayers. Cars could be seen streaming down the road, flags blowing in the wind as the chants of “Egypt, Egypt” could be heard from the sidewalk. Journalists quickly made their way to the scene, hoping to capture the images and footage of the mob.
Scores of Egyptian youth converged again on the embassy, but police were ready, and willing, to stop them. Force was necessary. Reports of Egyptians being arrested surfaced on the social-networking Twitter website as locals began following the protests and demonstrations with interest.
“It is absolutely absurd,” said one Egyptian journalist, who watched the events unfolding with much disdain. “Egypt lost, who cares, now they are taking all the frustration out against their own people because they are angry at the government and the situation we all live in? It is horrible and disgusting that they would destroy shops and throw molotov cocktails at the police over a football match.”
Of course, the rioters, or demonstrators, depending on which side is speaking, the journalist was referring to Friday afternoons move from near the Algerian Embassy to downtown Cairo, where reports of molotov cocktails being thrown at police were reported. Bikya Masr could not confirm this specific incident from occurring, but a number of reports on Twitter argued they had in fact occurred.
Ironically, as tens of riot trucks lined the streets of Zamalek, blocks away from the Embassy, the glass windows of shops laying strewn across the sidewalk, police were quick to deny any incident had occurred.
“Bring me a newspaper with the photos of these demonstrations you are talking about,” one police General told Bikya Masr some 50 meters from the Algerian Embassy. “There was nothing going on, no violence, no demonstration. Where you get your information, I don’t know.”
It had been hours since the angry protesters had moved on from the area, leaving it cordoned off by hundreds, if not one thousand, police. The Embassy was now in recovery mode, and those with cameras were being moved away, often with force.
CNN’s Cairo bureau reported their video camera was taken by security in the early afternoon after they had allegedly captured footage of a woman being arrested.
Youtube videos remain circulating with footage of the past few days violent outbursts, in Sudan, in Algeria and now Egypt. The tension has turned into national pride and like Ahmed Saber said, “it is as if we care more about what others say than our own dignity.”
BM
You need to clarify why they are protesting. You make it seem as if they’re protesting a soccer loss. They’re protesting attacks on Egyptian citizens across the Arab world before / during / after the match.
People aren’t rioting because we lost the football match, people are rioting for what happened to our citizens after the match in Sudan. Egyptians were ambushed and viciously attacked by Algerian fans after THEY won the game. Egyptians want justice for what has happened and for now what would satisfy them is the expulsion of the Algerian ambassador. People aren’t going to shut up until this happens or until some semblance of justice has been served..but this has NOTHING to do with the results of the game and ALL to do with the barbaric acts of Algerian fans on Egyptians in Sudan and Algeria.
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This “minor” incident should serve as a warning to the Egyptian government. It is not about losing a game. It’s about Egyptian youth who are educated but can’t get a job, can’t get a job so can’t afford to buy a home, can’t afford to buy a home then can’t afford to get married. Living in an over crowded city where traffic, pollution, water and even the food (I hear) is questionable. Egyptian infrastructure is weak, fragile and it’s only the mercy of Allah that has kept it going for so long. I love Egypt but a blind man can see that it will fall into the hands of the Muslim Brotherhood soon. In the same way that disaffected Germans voted for that lunatic, Adolf Hitler after the 1st world war. When people are fed up and depressed, they will believe anything especially the promise of a better life. Trust me, in my lifetime Egypt will turn into another Iran or Afghanistan – mark my words.
To the above poster: Exactly — if they were not sexually frustrated or suffering from other internal problems they would not have done all these meaningless riots.
that sever exageration of the one writing tht article is almost unacceptable at all
no one died from fans or police , no severe violance (i was there & admit of little clash btween protestors & police that end up in nothing )
ppl r not protesting over a football match , ppl r protsting about the violance algerians against egyptians all over the world starting in sudan & algeria & spreading in london & paris where they tried to push any one wearing the red t-shirt of egypt under the wheels of the underground & if it were not for english police that could have been a disaster
so , plz be fair & search for the truth with evidences & proofs that r everywhere on the web of videoes of the ratty disgrace attack of algerians on egyptian fans
ppl don’t complain about losing…that’s football , but chacing with knives & destroying buses & beating & injuring fans & terrorizing the fans is a despicable act reflects the shabbiness of algerian ppl
I am surprised to see the Egyptian people releasing some steam, I thought they will continue with their hibernation and never come out of it. Though their real anger and frustration is not because of the football loss, but because the stagnant current domestic situation. It is a change as they direct their anger this time against Alger instead of Egyptian women as they usually do. The next step is to direct it against the real cause of their hardship.
“Denials abound as riots engulf Egypt”
Don’t you think this rather sensationalist title gives the wrong impression? Apart from impartial coverage that makes it seem that Egyptians are rioting because of a game, you make it seem like all of Egypt is engulfed in riots. Please take this into consideration the next time you post an article.
We want to let everyone know that the original photo posted with this story was passed to us by a reliable person who wrongly told us it was of Friday’s riots. It turns out that it was a photo taken by James Buck during the Mahalla demonstrations. Thank you all for bringing this to our attention and we apologize for the error.
[...] metres from destroyed windows, what they said was shocking but highlights the entire situation of Egyptian denial. “Nothing happened here, it is all the media’s hype trying to show how bad the [...]
We should get over it, a country that count 60% of illiterate people that lives on less than $2 a day shouldnt focus on such trivial issues…
Success is not the result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire.