Riots broke out in Brussels after the Moroccan national soccer team reached the round of 16 at the World Cup – like on Sunday after the victory against Belgium, but not quite as violently. The police had to intervene several times.
18 people were taken into police custody for disturbing public order. This was reported by the Belgian news agency Belga on Thursday evening, citing a police spokeswoman. Earlier in the evening, the police had announced that there were no riots.
According to the report, Morocco fans partied downtown in the Belgian capital and set off firecrackers to celebrate the team’s success after beating Canada 2-1 in Qatar. Some fireworks also hit the police, who then used tear gas, Belga wrote.
The joy of reaching the round of 16 was huge
Compared to Sunday, the evening was a lot less violent on the streets of Brussels
Several streets in the Belgian capital were temporarily closed due to the crowds. According to Belga, there were also riots in Antwerp. 35 people were temporarily arrested there. Three police officers were injured. French media reports according to reports, after the Moroccan victory, there were also riots in the French city of Avignon.
Riots broke out in the Belgian capital on Sunday after Belgium lost 2-0 to Morocco. Around 100 police officers had to take action against fans who destroyed shop windows and cars and threw objects at the officers. A police spokeswoman said some fans were armed with sticks and a journalist was “injured in the face by fireworks”. The public prosecutor’s office has started an investigation. Riots also broke out in other parts of Belgium and Holland on Sunday.
Morocco have qualified for a World Cup Round of 16 for the first time in 36 years. In Mexico in 1986, the Africans lost 1-0 to Germany in the round of 16 – Lothar Matthäus only scored the decisive goal in the 87th minute.
(bw/dpa)