A questionable red card at a soccer match in Nzerekore, Guinea triggered absolute chaos that resulted in the death of at least 56 people.
There’s not a lot of information about what exactly happened, mostly because the military controlling the city is keeping things in-house. What is known, though, is that the government confirmed 56 fatalities at the tournament.
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The causes of these deaths could be anything from the stones being thrown by fans, the ensuing panic that resulted in stampedes, or the tear gas that was dispersed by law enforcement to control the crowd. All of this insanity led to people being stuck under a crash at the gates, where the Associated Press received a first-hand account that this particular moment was likely where the deaths racked up.
There were around 30,000 attendees at the tournament that was held in honor of military leader Mamadi Doumbouya. There are a lot more layers to this story than just fans being upset at a bad call against their team, too. Doumboya, who became leader in 2021 via a coup, has plenty of opposition. The AP spoke with The National Alliance for Alternation and Democracy coalition which called the military leader out for “illegal and inappropriate political ambitions.”
So, yes, the chaos started right at the moment of the red card ejection on the field, but from all accounts, it sounds like the tournament was a tinder box ready to ignite whenever the opportunity presented itself.
“In a context where the country is already marked by tensions and restrictions, this tragedy highlights the dangers of irresponsible organization,” a statement by the current leader’s predecessor, per Reuters.
All of this is extremely heartbreaking and unfortunate at a place where violence should never reach levels like this. Sports are meant to be an escape, not ground zero for a political war.
