The Future Begins Now: A National Alliance Bridging the Gap Between Classroom Seats and Leadership Dreams    Ahl Masr Burn Hospital Concludes First Scientific Forum, Prepares for Expanded Second Edition in 2026    Egypt Tax Authority Standardises VAT Treatment for Exported Services, Issues Guidance    EGX ends week in green on 27 Nov.    Resilience, Innovation, and the Smart Home: Mohamed Ataya on GROHE's Strategic Vision for Egypt    Australia returns 17 rare ancient Egyptian artefacts    Asian stocks rise on Thursday    Gaza death toll rises as humanitarian crisis deepens, Israeli offensive expands in West Bank    China's WINPEX to establish $15m lighting equipment plant in Ain Sokhna    Egypt expands rollout of Universal Health Insurance    Egypt's Al-Sisi links national progress to strict law enforcement, says society has role in reforming legal application    Cairo affirms commitment to Lebanese sovereignty, urges halt to cross-border violations    China invites Egypt to join African duty-free export scheme    Egypt, Algeria agree to deepen strategic ties, coordinate on Gaza ceasefire, regional crises    Egypt calls for stronger Africa-Europe partnership at Luanda summit    Egypt begins 2nd round of parliamentary elections with 34.6m eligible voters    Egypt warns of erratic Ethiopian dam operations after sharp swings in Blue Nile flows    Egypt scraps parliamentary election results in 19 districts over violations    Egypt extends Ramses II Tokyo Exhibition as it draws 350k visitors to date    Egypt signs host agreement for Barcelona Convention COP24 in December    Al-Sisi urges probe into election events, says vote could be cancelled if necessary    Filmmakers, experts to discuss teen mental health at Cairo festival panel    Cairo International Film Festival to premiere 'Malaga Alley,' honour Khaled El Nabawy    Cairo hosts African Union's 5th Awareness Week on Post-Conflict Reconstruction on 19 Nov.    Egypt golf team reclaims Arab standing with silver; Omar Hisham Talaat congratulates team    Egypt launches National Strategy for Rare Diseases at PHDC'25    Egypt adds trachoma elimination to health success track record: WHO    Grand Egyptian Museum welcomes over 12,000 visitors on seventh day    'Royalty on the Nile': Grand Ball of Monte-Carlo comes to Cairo    Egypt launches Red Sea Open to boost tourism, international profile    Omar Hisham Talaat: Media partnership with 'On Sports' key to promoting Egyptian golf tourism    Sisi expands national support fund to include diplomats who died on duty    Egypt's PM reviews efforts to remove Nile River encroachments    Egypt resolves dispute between top African sports bodies ahead of 2027 African Games    Germany among EU's priciest labour markets – official data    Paris Olympic gold '24 medals hit record value    It's a bit frustrating to draw at home: Real Madrid keeper after Villarreal game    Russia says it's in sync with US, China, Pakistan on Taliban    Shoukry reviews with Guterres Egypt's efforts to achieve SDGs, promote human rights    Sudan says countries must cooperate on vaccines    Johnson & Johnson: Second shot boosts antibodies and protection against COVID-19    Egypt to tax bloggers, YouTubers    Egypt's FM asserts importance of stability in Libya, holding elections as scheduled    We mustn't lose touch: Muller after Bayern win in Bundesliga    Egypt records 36 new deaths from Covid-19, highest since mid June    Egypt sells $3 bln US-dollar dominated eurobonds    Gamal Hanafy's ceramic exhibition at Gezira Arts Centre is a must go    Italian Institute Director Davide Scalmani presents activities of the Cairo Institute for ITALIANA.IT platform    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Albanian team gets heroes' welcome after clashes
Albania's national soccer team returned home to a heroes' welcome Wednesday after a game in Serbia that was abandoned after an Albanian nationalist banner was flown by a drone over the stadium
AP Published in Ahram Online on 15 - 10 - 2014

Albania's national soccer team returned home to a heroes' welcome Wednesday after a game in Serbia that was abandoned after an Albanian nationalist banner was flown by a drone over the stadium, sparking violence between players and fans.
The referee halted the scoreless European Championship qualifying match in the 41st minute Tuesday night when a Serbian player grabbed the banner - which carried a map of Albania enlarged to include chunks of its neighbors - and Albanian players tried to protect it. Serbian fans then ran onto the field and clashed with Albanian players.
At the start of the match, the Albanian anthem was loudly jeered by Serbian fans and derogatory chants were heard throughout the first half. Serbian supporters also threw flares at the field.
Fans of both nations have a long history of violence and racial abuse. Albanian fans had been warned against attending Tuesday's game in Belgrade due to their nations' turbulent relations, mainly over the former ethnic Albanian-dominated Serbian province of Kosovo, which declared independence in 2008. Serbia has never accepted Kosovo's independence.
Up to 3,000 flag-waving supporters gathered outside Tirana's airport early Wednesday to cheer the team. Prime Minister Edi Rama, who is abroad, praised players on his Twitter page for ''the pride and joy they gave us,'' and said he was ''present in my heart'' at the airport reception.
Albanian Foreign Minister Ditmir Bushati tweeted that ''Football should not be highjacked by extremism,'' adding ''Proud of our (hash) Albania team: showed courage and maturity.''
Albania goalkeeper Etrit Berisha thanked the fans for the welcome, writing on his Facebook page that ''defending our national symbols is a duty for us!''
Captain Lorik Cana said the team ''unanimously decided'' not to continue with the game.
''We considered our physical situation, with some injured players, which was not good,'' he said, adding that players also felt threatened. ''Our situation was clear, we could not continue the match. And the security situation was not adequate either.''
Cana said players ''showed our neighbors we know how to respect them and also walk ... with our heads high.''
Rama, the prime minister, is scheduled to visit Belgrade next week, the first by an Albanian prime minister in 68 years. It was not clear if that trip was still on.
(For more sports news and updates, follow AhramOnline Sports on Twitter at@AO_Sportsand on Facebook atAhramOnlineSports.)
http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/113141.aspx

Clic here to read the story from its source.