CAIRO, January 26 (RIA Novosti) – At least 26 people have died and over 200 have been injured during clashes between police and soccer fans in the Egyptian city of Port Said, the head of the local hospital confirmed on Saturday.
Violence erupted after a court handed down death sentences to all 21 defendents in a trial that is part of the high-profile “Port Said tragedy” case.
A total of 73 people, including nine police officers, face trial over the February 2, 2012 clashes between local Al Masri fans and Cairo club Al Ahly fans that left over 72 people dead and another 254 injured.
All 21 defendants sentenced to death on Saturday were Al Masri fans. After hearing the sentence, radical Al Masri fans attempted to storm the prison where their fellow fans are being held, to free them. Violence has spread to the court and local police buildings.
The Defense Ministry told journalists that the army would be deployed to "protect state institutions" in Port Said.
Egypt’s President Mohamed Morsi recalled his Prime Minister Hisham Kandil from the Davos Economic Forum in Switzerland on Saturday in reaction to the violence across the country, Marsavi website reported.
Another Egyptian news site, Al Akhram, said Morsi was holding an emergency meeting of the country’s National Defense Council.
Updated: First paragraph updates number of killed to 26, and last paragraph on reaction of Egyptian government
