Riot Leaves Dozens Dead, Injured Soccer Fans Reportedly Shot By Bodyguards Of Gadhafi’s Son

Libyan television broadcast in black and white Sunday to mourn dozens of people killed or wounded in a riot at a soccer game, diplomats and opposition figures said.

The match in the Libyan capital of Tripoli pitted the rival teams Al-Ittihad and Al-Ahli, which is controlled by Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi’s son, Al-Saadi.

Accounts of what happened differ.

State-run Libyan television reported Saturday that several people were killed during “violent incidents” at a soccer game on Friday but gave no details.

The Libyan government declared Sunday a day of mourning. During such mourning periods, public parties are banned and TV broadcasts are in black and white.

An opposition leader living in Cairo said up to 50 people were killed or hurt.

He said the altercation began with fans shouting and running onto the field to challenge a call by a referee they considered biased in favor of Al-Ahli.

Al-Saadi’s bodyguards then opened fire to protect him. Others returned fire, and dozens of people were killed or wounded in the gunfire and a crush to get out of the area, said the opposition leader, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

A Western diplomat in Tripoli, also speaking on condition of anonymity, said by telephone that he had heard there were as many as 40 casualties in the stadium altercation and in a riot in the surrounding streets.

No details of the events have been reported in government-controlled Libyan newspapers or by the official JANA news agency, he said.

There were reports of a riot at an Al-Ahli game last year. It reportedly began when angry fans tried to smash Al-Saadi’s car.

Saturday’s Libyan television report, monitored by the British Broadcasting Corp. in London, said Libyan sports officials held an emergency meeting and disbanded both soccer teams.

Libyan soccer competition was suspended for at least two seasons in the early 1990s because of violence.

Last week’s riot comes amid reports of other unrest in Libya. Clashes between Gadhafi’s forces and Muslim militants in the eastern part of the country have been reported for months. The latest attack there last week reportedly killed four people.