Riot in Cairo!

I know I haven't posted in a while (an intense update hitting your mailboxes soon?), but I have to get some quick thoughts out right now on one of my craziest nights in Cairo.

I just witnessed my first riot, a few blocks away from my hostel in Zamalek. Broken glass, flipped cars, police with shields and batons (and maybe rubber bullets?), and an enormous crowd of Egyptians, mixed in with the occasional intrigued foreigner, chanting frantically, lighting Algerian flags on fire, throwing the occasional rock in the direction of police, and mostly running around wildly. The chants wouldn't have made the protesters mothers' very happy; from what I could gather they ranged from "Fuck Algeria" to "Algerian women are whores" to "Algeria, Kus Emek," a derogatory term I learned in 5th grade Hebrew class.

Some quick background and then some points of interest. (It's 4:00 in the morning here, and I'm tired)

Algeria and Egypt played soccer or 'futbol' on Wednesday night in Sudan to decide who would represent Africa in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Egypt was not victorious, and lost the match 1-0. There has been bad blood between the Algerians and Egyptians for years--back in the early 90's, the Algerians roughed up a number of Egyptian fans after a game in Algeria and insulted the team players, and Egyptians did not take kindly to the offenses. Nearly two decades later, Egypt had a chance to avenge their pride, but after winning a game against Algeria last Saturday to advance to this 'deciding' game on Wednesday, Egypt came up short. Egyptians were absolutely appalled; I was shocked to see Egyptians openly crying in the streets, and a dead silence fell on Cairo after the game. I'm an avid sports fan, but this was something different: the futbol team was more than just a sports team for Egyptians, it was a source of real hope and pride in an otherwise downcast reality for so many Egyptians. When I asked an Egyptian friend of mine a few nights before the Wednesday game why so many Egyptians seems absolutely crazed about the upcoming game, he told me (in a bit of a drunken state, and perhaps because of that, I think--more frankly and truthfully) that Egyptians simply didn't have anything else to look forward to. "Our country is so fucked. The economy is in shambles. The government does nothing for the people. The people are depressed. But futbol and Egypt's team lets us forget all about that for a minute, and concentrate on something that makes us truly happy."

Wednesday night was quiet in Cairo; the looming silence before the storm. Thursday night brought on the storm, and Zamalek--where the Algerian Embassy is situated--found the eye of the storm. It was quite a spectacle, and I'll try to find and post pictures. There were at least 500 police officers at the Embassy alone, and after someone managed to hit the Embassy building with a rock, the police started closing off major intersections throughout Zamalek, (and maybe other neighborhoods?). I guess we'll see what happens tomorrow..

Some thoughts:

1. I find it fascinating to watch police-officers my age, with no training in riot-control, try to hold off groups of angry, violent protesters. I'm sure many of them sympathize with the protesters cause, (which I guess would be--"Fuck Algeria?"), and I just wonder what goes through their heads as the protesters approach them. Can't be too many happy thoughts...
2. No sign of government protests, or anything political. Guess this is purely a sports riot, which brings me to a larger question: what exactly is the meaning of these riots? Who or what is being rioted against? Egypt lost the match, fair and square. Is it simply a reflection of frustration with the outcome, or perhaps a representation of what Egyptians would like to do to Algerians? Or is there a deeper meaning--is the riot somewhat symbolic of anger with the state of society in Egypt today? It could also just be something to do on a Thursday night. I'm not sure I've ever rioted, but I've had my share of angry and (more-or-less) arbitrary moments which have culminated in violent actions... Perhaps it's a combination of all these factors.
3. I did not see a single women among the thousands of protesters on the streets. I'm going to write significantly more about the state of women in a separate post, but it's deeply upsetting to me that women cannot participate in protests, or for that matter--even attend futbol games for fear of being attacked. It's a depressing reality in Egypt, and is something I will never be able to look past in analyzing Egyptian culture.

Anyway, off to bed! Quite a night! There's always 2014 Egypt!

Some updates: (My analysis has been criticized by some more informed Egyptians)

My previous question: 'Why exactly are the Egyptians rioting,' became a bit more apparent as I read up on the topic and consulted some Egyptian friends. According to international news sources, Algerians protesters "attacked 15 offices belonging to a local subsidiary of Egypt's Orascom Telecom, and twice ransacked the Algiers offices of Egypt Air" (Yahoo Report). I was worried about the authenticity of some Egyptians news sources--emotions are running quite high here, news reporting isn't always the most objective science, and reports of Egyptians being stabbed to death after the game in Sudan seemed pretty extreme. But once the international community started reporting the violent aftermath of the game, I felt much more comfortable with the authenticity. Also, pictures of Egyptian buses returning from the game in Sudan are shocking. All the windows are shattered, the buses exteriors were dented and bruised by rocks, and there were a number of injured Egyptians--although the number is disputed.

Whatever the case, the Egyptian reaction makes more sense now--although why exactly they are destroying there own property remains a mystery to me?? Aren't there any Algerian symbols besides the Embassy? Or even better, how about promoting non-violent protests? (That might go a far way in showing more 'civility.' And with both sides screaming about the other country's "acts of barbarism," peaceful demonstrations sure would have made a lasting point.)

Anyway. I guess the riots make a bit more sense in light of these updates. I think I'm over the fascination of the riots by this point. At the end of the day, it's just a soccer/fubtol game, right?

Articles:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091120/wl_africa_afp/egyptalgeriaunrest
http://thedailynewsegypt.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=25989
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/21/world/africa/21egypt.html?_r=1&src=tw