CAIRO - Karim Adel, a fervent supporter of the popular Al-Ahly, narrowly escaped death in a fatal riot that followed his team's away match in Port Said. "The police did nothing to stop the massacre of the Ultras following Al-Ahly's match against [the home side] Al-Masry," he says. Adel saw many of his young friends crushed to death during the stampede that followed the attack the Ultras believe was planned in advance in collusion with the police. The Ultras, diehard supporters of several top Egyptian teams, are out to avenge the Port Said deaths. In the aftermath of the tragedy, thousands of these hardcore soccer fans marched on the Interior Ministry headquarters in central Cairo, which they view as a symbol of oppression. They battled security guards who fired large quantities of tear gas at them to keep them at bay. However, the Ultras did not budge for days, chanting: "Either we restore their [those who died] rights or we'll die like them." The clashes marked the climax of strained ties between the Egyptian Ultras and the police. Since the eruption of the revolution against the Mubarak regime, the Ultras have been at the centre of the drive for radical changes in Egypt. They led the vigilante groups that were set up at the entrances to Tahrir Square, the epicentre of the anti-Mubarak protests. They also bore the brunt of an attack last February mounted by the Mubarak loyalists against his opponents in the Square, in what came to be known in the local media as the ‘Battle of the Camel'. In the ensuing months, the Ultras had occasionally scuffled with the police in local and regional matches. The security forces, suspected of maintaining their old oppressive methods, were apparently irked by the Ultras' insistence on chanting "Down with military rule," before any game kicked off. Those soccer devotees say tough police practices against them have only made them more united. As they pushed their way towards the Interior Ministry building this past week, the Ultras were holding banners of Al-Ahly and Zamalek, traditionally the country's biggest soccer rivals on the pitch. "These sincere Egyptians played a major role in the revolution against the Mubarak regime," said Ikrami, a former Ahly goalkeeper. "They are frustrated at seeing the corruption and oppression persist despite all the sacrifices the Egyptians have made over the past months," he told Egyptian TV. "The Ultras should not be punished. Those who allow corruption and oppression to continue are the ones who should be punished."
