Egyptian fans show Rabaa sign at African championships

Hundreds of Egyptian football fans flashed the four-fingered Rabaa sign as Al-Ahly took on the Orlando Pirates in an African Championship semi-final match in Johannesburg on Saturday night.

The sign is an indication of opposition to the government of Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and support for deposed former President Mohamed Morsi.

“We are sending a message to… Sisi to stop persecuting members of the Muslim Brotherhood,” one Egyptian living in South Africa said, referring to Morsi’s supporters. Rabaa protests commemorate the massacre of at least 1,150 Morsi supporters by security forces in Cairo in August 2013.

“We are supporters of Al-Ahly but we also wanted to use this opportunity to inform South Africans and the world about the current situation in Egypt,” the Egyptian ex-pat, who asked for his name not to be used, added.

Annother fan told Anadolu Agency: “We also wanted to show our solidarity with President Mohammed Morsi and several other Egyptians detained by Sisi’s dictatorial regime on trumped up charges.”

Police later confiscated a number of political banners and Rabaa T-shirts.

Iqbal Jassat, of advocacy group Media Review Network, said he was “outraged” at reports the protests were interfered with by police. “South Africa is a free country and it’s a shame to our democracy,” he said.

A first-half goal was enough to see the Pirates win the first-leg match. The return fixture is to be played in Cairo next weekend.