Archive for Ultras Ahlawy

The Board of Directors of the Egyptian Football Association decided on Thursday to resume football activities and resume the Premier League on 15 December, after a meeting with heads and representatives of the clubs participating in the league.

The meeting was attended by representatives of 15 clubs including Ahly, Zamalek, Military Production, Arab Contractors, Enppi and Ismailia.

According to the Football Association's website, the attendees agreed to start the league no later than mid-December, and to notify the relevant authorities including the ministries of interior, defense and sport of the precise date along with the timetable of the games and the stadiums where they will take place.

The Premier League was suspended in February after 72 Ahly fans, mostly members of hardcore football fans Ultras Ahlawy, were killed following a match between Ahly and the Port Said-based team Masry.

The league was postponed more than once due to Ultras Ahlawy protests against resuming football activities before anyone has been brought to justice for the Port Said killings.

Some workers in the sport sector demonstrated demanding the resumption of football activities, while others supported the demands of Ultras.

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Hundreds of political activists belonging to different revolutionary movements and coalitions performed prayers in Tahrir Square Tuesday for the victims of last November's Mohamed Mahmoud Street clashes.

Activists had planned a march from Cairo University to Tahrir Square on Tuesday evening.

Ultras Ahlawy members who attended the event chanted slogans against the former ruling Supreme Council of Armed Forces and the Muslim Brotherhood. Many activists and politicians hold the SCAF responsible for the deadly Mohamed Mahmoud clashes.

The SCAF took power during the transition period following the ouster of former President Hosni Mubarak.

The march marks the first anniversary of the bloody events that took place in Mohamed Mahmoud Street near Tahrir Square after security forces used excessive force on 19 November 2011 to break up a sit-in of protesters who were injured or whose relatives were killed during the revolution.

The incident provoked many citizens to go to Tahrir Square, where clashes continued with security forces for several days, during which 45 people died and hundreds were injured.

The trial of suspects is ongoing.

Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
 

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Ahly will play against Tunisia’s Esperance in the African Champions League final first-leg Sunday at Borg al-Arab stadium in Alexandria.

The two teams will play again in Tunisia on 17 November.

MENA cited Ahly Club’s administration as saying that tickets for the match have sold out even though Ahly’s hardcore fans, Ultras Ahlawy, said on Facebook that they will not attend the match.

Ultras Ahlawy rejects the resumption of the Egyptian football league, which had previously been postponed indefinitely, until those responsible for the death of 74 football fans at the Port Said Stadium in February are punished.

The Port Said Criminal Court is reviewing a case in which 75 are charged with involvement in the massacre.

The Confederation of African Football had obliged Ahly to allow spectators to attend Sunday’s match.

Ahly had played most of its African League games in empty stadiums according to security measures taken by the Interior Ministry.

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Mahdy Suleiman, an Egyptian goalkeeper, said he is likely to accept a formal offer to join the Israeli Hapoel Tel Aviv F.C. during the upcoming winter break, “if it is the only chance to play football."

Suleiman is currently playing for Petrojet F.C, which competes in the suspended Egyptian Premier League. He previously played for prominent Egyptian football teams Ennpi and Arab Contractors.

Suleiman told Sky News Arabia in a telephone interview, “I received the formal offer through a Hungarian agent. I have not yet accepted it, but I might think of accepting if it is the only way for me.”

He described agreeing to play in the Israeli league as a "very serious risk.”

“A large number of Egyptian players contacted me as soon as they knew of the offer, so that I [could] ask the agent to find opportunities for them in the Israeli league, if possible," the 25-year-old goalkeeper added, without naming the players.

Suleiman said that any player’s wish to play in the Israeli league is justified by the suspension of football activity in Egypt, criticizing "those responsible for resuming the activity in the country who do not think of the future of all the workers of the sports sector.

Suleiman did not reveal the financial terms of the offer he was sent, and neither did he reveal the number of years of the contract.

Premier League football activity has been suspended in Egypt since the Port Said football violence, in which at least 72 Ahly fans, particularly members of the group Ultras Ahlawy, were killed after fans of the club Masry stormed the pitch at Port Said Stadium.

Some workers in the football sector, including players, administrators or journalists, complain about financial difficulties as a result of the activity halt.

However Ultras Ahlawy, supported by other members of the football sectors, members of the victims's families and many political activists and groups reject the resumption of Premier League matches.

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Marches towards Tahrir Square have begun in neighborhoods around Cairo with the end of Friday prayers.

Some have already reached the square. Protesters are demonstrating against the Muslim Brotherhood and its political arm, the Freedom and Justice Party. Liberals, leftist and revolutionary figures are calling the day of protests “Egypt for all Egyptians.” 

The satellite TV channel Al-Jazeera Mubasher Misr showed footage of a march entering Tahrir from Talaat Harb Street. Protesters chanted, “Sell the revolution Badie,” referring to the Muslim Brotherhood’s supreme guide. Other activists standing on a stage in the square announced that the Ultras Ahlawy would also be marching to join them.

Marches have begun in Shubra, Sayeda Zeinab and Mohandiseen. Activist Ahmed Harara and Emad Abo Ghazi, a Constitution Party leader and the former minister of culture, have both joined the march from Subra.

Dozens already began arriving in the square early on Friday morning. Members of the Constitution Party have set up a stage in the square with a banner reading, “No to the hegemony of the Constituent Assembly.”

Other banners in the square read, “We want the constitution to be for all Egyptians,” and “From Tahrir we say ‘No’ to the constitution tailors.”

Ambulances have lined up at the entrances to the square in anticipation of any emergency events.

The protesters’ demands include the dissolution of the Muslim Brotherhood-dominated Constituent Assembly, the rejection of the final draft of the new constitution, the establishment of a minimum and maximum wage, an end to high prices, the retrial of the acquitted killers of the martyrs of the revolution, the recovery of funds smuggled abroad by former regime officials, and the elimination of corruption in state institutions.

Seven marches are planned from different locations in the greater Cairo area to Tahrir Square throughout the day, in addition to demonstrations in several governorates where clashes that took place last Friday between leftist and Brotherhood forces during a day of protests criticizing President Mohamed Morsy’s first 100 days in office.

Participants in today’s marches call for an apology from the Muslim Brotherhood for last week’s clashes.

Thirty parties and political movements announced participation in today’s protests, including the Constitution Party, the Egyptian Social Democratic Party, the Popular Socialist Alliance, the Revolutionary Youth Union, the April 6 Youth Movement and the Kefaya Movement.

Amr Moussa and Hamdeen Sabbahi both stated that they would be marching today.

The National Association for Change announced participation as well, and called on participants not to respond to any provocation, so as to keep the protests peaceful.

The April 6 Youth Movement has called for a consensual constitution. The movement demanded an apology from the Muslim Brotherhood and called on Morsy to hold the group responsible for Friday 12 October clashes.

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A large number of Ultras Ahlawy on Wednesday stormed the Ahly club and demanded that Chairman Hassan Hamdy resign for tarnishing the club's reputation.

Around 200 ultras participated. They did not commit any acts of violence, and stressed that they just came to deliver a message.

The Illicit Gains Authority interrogated Hamdy on Tuesday over accusations that he amassed wealth unlawfully during his tenure as director of Ahram Advertising Agency. The authority released him on bail of LE2 million pending investigations after he failed to prove the legality of his fortune. The authority also decided to ban Hamdy from leaving the country and freeze his assets.

Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm

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The leaders of the Ultras Ahlawy, the hardcore fan group for Cairo’s Ahly football club, announced plans to hold a protest in front of the Sports Ministry Tuesday against the Premier League football season.

The ultras’ call comes in response to a demonstration staged by former and current footballers and media personalities on Monday demanding that sports activity be resumed following a months-long hiatus after the Port Said massacre.  

According to state-run newspaper Al-Ahram, former Ahly goalkeeper Ahmed Shobeir organized and led the protest in front of the Sports Ministry on Monday. Shobeir is a former member of the dissolved National Democratic Party.

On 1 February, 74 people were killed and hundreds injured when Port Said’s Masry supporters stormed the pitch after a rare victory over Ahly.

Ahly fans and their supporters say it is unacceptable that the football season resume before the perpetrators of the massacre are punished. The Port Said Criminal Court is currently hearing a case in which 75 people are charged with responsibility for the deaths, including the former head of security in Port Said, three of his aides, police officers who were working security at the match, and some Masry Club fans.

In a statement on Facebook, the Ultras Ahlawy invited its members as well as any Egyptian who supports their cause to gather in front of the Tarsana Club in Mohandiseen Tuesday to march to the Sports Ministry, where they will begin protesting at noon to reject the return of Premier League games until the trial is over and to demand corruption be purged from the sports sector.

The group noted that they have no problem with lower football divisions holding games and only call for the postponement of the Premier League season.

“Sports activity will not be resumed, especially the Premier League, regardless of pressure, until retribution has been achieved,” one of the group’s leaders said.

Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm

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The inaugural match of the Super Cup, between the Ahly and ENPI clubs, began at 9 pm on Sunday at Borg al-Arab stadium in Alexandria, despite protests from some football fans to cancel football matches until justice is attained for the victims of the Port Said Stadium violence last February.

The players arrived at the stadium an hour beforehand amid tight security.

Alexandria security forces had earlier expressed reservations about their preparedness to secure the match. The match was set to begin at 8 pm, but local security said they would need one extra hour to secure it.

Alexandria Governor Khaled Ghoraba had said the match would be played on time, but no spectators would be allowed in the vicinity of 6.5 kilometers from the stadium. Earlier Sunday, thousands of the Ultras Ahlawy, a group of hardcore Ahly Club football fans, marched to Borg al-Arab Stadium, where the match is set to be played, threatening to stop the match by force.

President Mohamed Morsy’s spokesperson said at a press conference earlier Sunday that the president was not responsible for deciding whether the match would be played. The match is the first official Egyptian football match since the Port Said Stadium violence in February.

“It is up to the Sports Ministry to cancel or allow the match to be played,” spokesperson Yasser Ali said.

Sports Minister Al-Emary Farouq insisted Saturday that the match would go ahead. He also criticized Ahly player Mohamed Abu Treika for refusing to play, in solidarity with the ultras.

Early last February, 74 were killed and hundreds injured after fans of the local Port Said football team, Masry, stormed the field following a rare victory.

Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm

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About 300 people marched Sunday to the Borg al-Arab stadium in Alexandria to protest a game scheduled there later in the day between Ahly and ENPI.

By late afternoon, the Ultras Ahlawy had reached the hotel in Alexandria where players are staying and say that police and security inside the hotel outnumber them. The group has decided to camp in front of the hotel until the match kicks off.

The ultras chanted, sometimes rhyming in Arabic: "Oppression is everywhere, we won't forget when we were slaves of the regime," "The Interior Ministry is made up of thugs" and "Fuck football."

Plans to hold the game, which is part of the Super Cup, have stirred tensions after all football activities in Egypt were halted following the killings of 74 Ahly fans at a game in the coastal city of Port Said in February. Ahly fans and their supporters deem it unacceptable that football activity is resumed before the prosecution of the perpetrators of the massacre, which is pending a court case.

Earlier today, the official Ahly fans group, Ultras Ahlawy, issued a statement accusing the Interior Ministry of instigating the local community of Borg al-Arab against them ahead of the game, in response to their plan to storm the stadium to stop the match. As a result, the group decided to cancel its planned gathering.

However, informal gatherings of Ahly fans still grouped and started heading to the stadium, chanting, “No Super,” in reference to the football match.

On the way to the stadium, seven police trucks filled with policemen drove by the march giving the finger to the protesters, who replied with similar gestures.

With ongoing tensions, and following an earlier break-in by Ultras Ahlawy members into the Egyptian Football Association office in Cairo to protest the plan to resume the season on 17 September, Sports Minister Al-Emary Farouq announced on Saturday that the season would be delayed until 17 October.

Tensions between ultras and the police have been commonplace in recent years, predating the revolution.

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