Port Said funeral turns violent

Nouran El-Behairy
3 Min Read

Gunfire and tear gas were used as clashes continued in Port Said on Sunday, raising the number of casualties to at least 32 dead and 416 injured; 17 suffered gunshot wounds.

The funeral processions of those who died on Saturday clashes turned violent when unknown assailants fired shots at the mourners.

Police responded by firing tear gas, and mourners escaped to side streets.

Shooting started as the funeral marched by the police club, according to Al-Jazeera English reporter Rawya Rageh in Port Said.

The police club and an army club next to it were also set ablaze during the clashes, along with the historic Jewish cemetery. They were all subjected to looting.

Clashes also erupted around both the Manakh and Arab police stations.

Ahmed Khaled, one of the mourners, said nobody knew who was shooting. “We couldn’t bury the bodies amid the gunfire and people were suffocating on tear gas,” he said.

Violence had erupted in Port Said on Saturday after the Criminal Court sentenced 21 defendants to death for involvement in the deaths of 74 football fans in the match between Al-Ahly and Al-Masry last February.

Over 70 defendants were being tried; the remaining sentences were postponed to 9 March. Relatives of the condemned prisoners tried to storm the prison to free them.

The army was deployed to restore calm and surrounded the prison with armored vehicles and tanks.

Funeral prayers started immediately after noon prayers had finished, and were followed by a procession to the cemetery.

The funeral was held at the Mariam mosque despite noise from military helicopters that hovered overhead.

Mourners marching in the procession chanted against President Mohamed Morsy repeating “leave” and “the people demand the downfall of the regime.”

They also chanted: “We will defend the martyrs with our blood and souls” and “We either redeem them or die like them.”

Ultras Green Eagles, fans of the Al-Masry football club, issued a statement on their Facebook page saying they will not allow any political activity in the city until the killing of Port Said youth in the clashes has been investigated.

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