() — At least 127 people were killed and hundreds more injured, according to police, after chaos and violence on Saturday night after an Indonesian league soccer match between two of the country’s top teams.
Supporters of Arema FC and rival Persebaya Surabaya clashed after the local team Arema FC was beaten 3-2 in a match in the East Java city of Malang.
“First of all, a riot happened,” East Java Police Chief Nico Afinta said during a press conference after the event.
“Since the incident on Saturday (so far), 127 people have been killed, including two members of the police,” he said. About 200 people were also injured, he added.
This image shows smoke, which appeared to be tear gas, in videos from inside the stadium.
Videos recorded from inside the stadium late into the night and shared on social media showed fans, dressed in red and blue, storming onto the pitch and confronting Indonesian security forces, who appeared to be wearing riot gear. .
Video footage broadcast on local news channels also showed images of body bags, Reuters reported.
Smoke, which appeared to be tear gas, was also later seen on video, showing multiple people being led into a building. The severity of his injuries is unknown.
According to Afinta, when Arema FC lost 2-3 in the match against Persebaya Surabaya, their supporters stormed the field in anger.
There have been previous incidents at matches in Indonesia, with strong rivalry between clubs sometimes leading to violence between fans.
Indonesian police officers said the violence had erupted after the defeat of Arema FC, one of Indonesia’s biggest soccer clubs.
“Tarnishing the name of Indonesian football”
The Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) has suspended next week’s matches as a result of the deadly tragedy and banned Arema FC from hosting matches for the rest of the season.
“The PSSI regrets the actions of the Aremania supporters at the Kanjuruhan stadium,” the association’s president, Mochamad Iriawan, said in a statement issued on Sunday.
He added that the incident had “stained the face of Indonesian football” and that they supported official investigations into the event.
“We are sorry and apologize to the families of the victims and all parties for the incident,” the statement said.
“For that, PSSI immediately formed an investigation team and immediately left for Malang,” he added.
reached out to FIFA, soccer’s international governing body, for a statement but did not immediately hear back.
Persebaya issued a statement expressing their condolences, saying: “Persebaya’s great family expresses its deepest condolences for the loss of life after the Arema FC vs. Perseberry. No life is worth football.”
