|
|
Other News |
Infamous English fans plan to attack Turkish ones |
|
News |
|
|
June 16, 2000
EINDHOVEN, Netherlands (AP) - The Dutch intelligence service warned Thursday that English soccer hooligans were plotting to avenge the fatal stabbing of two Leeds supporters in Turkey earlier this year.
The National Security Service BVD in The Hague said English thugs intend to cause trouble at matches in Eindhoven or Charleroi, and warned that Italian hooligans also could join the fray.
BVD spokeswoman Miranda Havinga said appropriate officials had been alerted to the danger. "An official notice has been filed," she said.
Eindhoven police spokesman Ben Sibon said authorities in the southern Dutch city were aware of the warning, but expected a quiet evening, when Turkey plays Sweden.
"We have heard of the plans, but haven't had any trouble," Sibon said. "There are only a couple of English supporters still here."
In Belgium, officials said they also were reviewing the BVD report, but had not yet seen any British hooligans. England plays Germany on Saturday and Romania on Tuesday, which is also set for the 30,000-capacity stadium in Charleroi. Turkey plays Belgium on Monday in Brussels.
Two English fans were killed in street clashes in Istanbul April 5, the night before a UEFA cup game between Turkey's Galatasaray and England's Leeds United.
On Thursday, soccer officials from England and Turkey met in Eindhoven to discuss how the atmosphere between the fans could be improved.
English media estimated up to 40,000 English fans could travel to Belgium for the high-stakes Germany game in Charleroi on Saturday - about four times the number that came to Eindhoven for England's first match against Portugal. That Charleroi match is considered to be the most likely to produce hooligan violence.
There have been no serious incidents since Saturday's start of the European soccer tournament, hosted by the Dutch and the Belgians.
Before the tournament, hundreds of known hooligans were refused tickets by UEFA or were stopped at the border.
Once the matches began, authorities acted quickly when celebrations got too wild, arresting dozens of boisterous fans.
After Monday's England-Portugal match, about 20 English supporters yelling anti-Turkish slogans attacked five Turkish teen-agers. The Turks fled after a few blows, and no one was seriously hurt. Another England fan was seen giving a Nazi salute to a group of passing Turkish youths.
The presence of hundreds of thousands of Turkish immigrants and their families has raised fears that hooligan violence could also occur well away from the soccer field.
The match between England and Germany has particularly high stakes because England will be eliminated if it loses. The two teams have a long -standing rivalry and both teams have notorious hooligan followings.
Euro 2000 tournament director Alain Courtois said Wednesday he "was cautiously optimistic" about the Charleroi match and praised authorities for successfully deterring hooligans until now. |