The Zamalek hardcore fan group Ultras White Knights (UWK) has called on other Egyptians to join them in a gathering Monday at Al-Fustat Park in Cairo to memorialise 20 fans who were killed during a deadly stampede at the Air Defense Stadium gates last year.
"The UWK has decided to meet up with all Zamalek fans and all Egyptian brothers Monday 8 February at 3:00pm in Al-Fustat Park in memory of our loyal martyrs," the UWK said in a statement issued earlier in the week.
"We demand the justice that is owed to them, while honouring their love and sacrifice," the group said in a long statement published late Sunday on their Facebook group that includes almost one million fans.
The demonstration will be held at Al-Fustat Park because it is the only location in Cairo governorate where protests are allowed to take place without a permit.
The Zamalek club, whose president is known as a staunch opponent of all Ultras formations, refused to host the event at the club's stadium.
However, many have shown interest in joining the march, with the UWK Facebook evite drawing around 20K likes.
One year ago, on 8 February 2015, police forces used teargas to disperse thousands of Zamalek fans who tried to enter a limited-attendance football game in Cairo's military-owned Air Defense Stadium, leading to the death of 20 and hundreds of injuries.
Sixteen Zamalek fans are currently standing trial on criminal charges of inciting violence leading to the deaths at the Air Defense Stadium.
UWK maintains that the government, not those arrested and charged, is responsible for the death of the fans on that day.
Last week, thousands of Ultras Ahlawy members organised a mass memorial at Ahly club in Cairo in honor of the 72 Ahly fans who were killed in the Port Said stadium massacre in February 2012.
The fans demanded that officials they hold responsible for the death of their colleagues be brought to justice. Ultras Ahlawy also honoured the 20 Zamalek victims of the deadly 2015 incident during the memorial.
In 2015, an Egyptian criminal court doled out eleven death sentences and two dozen prison sentences in the Port Said massacre trial. These sentences have been appealed.
Both Ahly and Ultras Green Eagles of the Port Said Club have separately maintained that the government has arrested and indicted the wrong people in an attempt to cover up for the real culprits.
The Ultras Ahlawy rally last Monday stirred controversy after speakers chanted against members of the former Supreme Council of Armed Forces that ruled the country from 2011 to 2012, accusing them of orchestrating the killings.
After some media outlets criticised Ahly management for allowing the event to take place inside of their club’s stadium, the club’s president Mahmoud Taher, said that the club is not responsible for Ultras Ahlawy actions or chants.
Later that Monday night, President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi called in to a popular cable television program to comment on the demands of Ultras Ahlawy.
The president invited the group to choose representatives who could participate in a review of the ongoing criminal case.
In a statement issued shortly after the president’s comments, Ultras Ahlawy rejected El-Sisi’s proposal, saying the group does not want to be “the judge and jury.”
As Ahly and Zamalek teams train for Tuesday's Cairo derby in Alexandria’s Borg El-Arab stadium in day 19 of the Egyptian Premier League, many Ahly fans have confirmed that they will be joining UWK in Al-Fustat Park.
