Brussels: At least ten people were detained in Brussels, where riots erupted after Morocco beat Belgium 2-0 at the World Cup in Qatar, the Belgium-based RTBF broadcaster reports.
Several people set trash containers on fire and threw bricks at vehicles in the center of Brussels on Sunday after Belgium’s loss. Media reports said police used water cannons and tear gas and that there were casualties .
The riots took place in several places across the Belgian capital where dozens of soccer fans, some draped in Moroccan flags, clashed with riot police with water cannons and tear gas.
The Belgium-based broadcaster said that about ten administrative arrests and one judicial arrest were made amid the riots.
Meanwhile, Le Soir said that about ten arrests were made in the port city of Antwerp on Sunday. Transport disruptions were reported in Belgium amid the Sunday riots.
Earlier, late goals by Abdelhamid Sabiri and Zakaria Aboukhlal powered Morocco to a 2-0 win over Belgium in a Group F match being played here at Al Thumama Stadium. This turned out to be yet another upset of FIFA World Cup 2022.
Following his side’s loss to Morocco, Belgium manager Roberto Martinez said that the first goal by the opponents affected the outcome heavily and his side failed to convert their chances into goals.
“Around 7 p.m. calm returned and preventive patrols remain in place in the sectors concerned,” police spokesperson Ilse Van de Keere said.
“The rioters used pyrotechnic material, projectiles, sticks, and set fire on the public highway,” the police said. “Also, a journalist was injured in the face by fireworks. It is for these reasons that it was decided to proceed with a police intervention, with the deployment of water cannon and the use of tear gas,” the police said.
(With agency inputs)