No less than 35 individuals had been injured after followers getting back from a match in Zagreb attacked police on a freeway, authorities say.
Outnumbered Croatian cops mentioned they had been pressured to fireplace warning photographs into the air and floor with reside ammunition when soccer followers getting back from a match within the capital Zagreb attacked them on a freeway with iron bars, bats and flares.
A complete of 20 cops had been amongst some 35 individuals injured, together with 4 followers with bullet wounds, authorities mentioned on Sunday.
The violence erupted late on Saturday when a convoy of greater than 260 vehicles and buses, transporting Hajduk Cut up soccer membership followers, was being escorted by police after the Hajduk group misplaced 3-1 to archrivals Dinamo Zagreb.
Travelling residence after their defeat to Dinamo Zagreb, the Hajduk followers might have been angered as a result of police had earlier barred them from coming into Zagreb’s soccer stadium with flares and banners. About 2,000 followers refused to enter the stadium and remained exterior all through the match, police mentioned.
Because the convoy of supporters travelled again to Cut up, which is about 355km (220 miles) south of Zagreb, a bunch of followers blocked site visitors on the Zagreb to Cut up freeway and began attacking cops.
“There have been no indicators one thing like this might occur,” Damir Baric, a senior police official in command of public safety, mentioned on Sunday.
“They blocked site visitors, immediately ran out of their automobiles and superior on the police who had been 10 instances outnumbered.”
Zagreb police chief Marko Rasic mentioned that three officers tried to seek out shelter inside a police van, however followers hurled a burning flare contained in the automobile, forcing them to evacuate.
The officers discharged their firearms, taking pictures about two dozen photographs primarily into the air but additionally into the bottom. The bullets apparently ricocheted and wounded a few of the attackers, he mentioned.
One fan struck by a bullet was severely wounded. Not one of the different injured, together with the cops, had been in life-threatening situation, police mentioned.
Police detained 43 people who find themselves dealing with costs of inciting unrest – a criminal offense that carries jail sentences from six months to 5 years if they're convicted.
The principle Croatian freeway main from Zagreb to the Adriatic Sea remained closed for a lot of the night time and early morning Sunday.
Footage posted on social media confirmed what seemed to be flares, and later followers pressured to lie on the bottom by police.
There have been a number of different incidents reported throughout and earlier than Saturday’s match, together with a hearth within the stands the place Dinamo followers had been situated after their flares ignited an enormous banner. It prompted a 10-minute delay within the second half.
Dinamo had already clinched the league title earlier than the match, with Hajduk ending the season in second place.
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