(Image source: The New York Times)

BY LIAM KEEGAN

Violence in Egypt spilled over into a second day as police squared off against protesters. The catalyst for the latest unrest was Wednesday night’s deadly soccer riots. ESPN has more.

“Anger over the soccer riot that left 74 dead yesterday led to a protest outside the Interior Ministry by as many as 10,000 people who accuse police of failing to stop the assaults.”

Protesters say the match, between the teams Al-Ahly and Al-Masry, suffered from a lack of security. An analyst tells CNN police have steered clear of the stadiums for some time.

“The fans would fight the police every weekend, from 2007 really when these fan movements started coming into existence. So since then, a lot of the police have not been going to the grounds because they’re so hated, and you see a power vacuum...”

Over the last two days police have shot two protesters dead, one soldier was killed outside the interior ministry, and two more protesters died yesterday from tear gas inhalation. On PBS News Hour, Matt Bradley of the Wall Street Journal explains what’s driving the protests.

“A lot of the protesters, a lot of the activists are saying this was a deliberate effort by the military regime, or the Ministry of the Interior, to cause violence.”

The protesters say police wanted the violence to break out so they would have an excuse to reinstate Egypt’s Emergency Law, giving police broad powers. But not everyone pointed the finger at police. The National Post reports.

“The Muslim Brotherhood’s Freedom and Justice Party blamed pro-Mubarak forces, saying it was orchestrated by Mubarak’s sons from their prison cells, and discerned the ever-popular influence of ‘foreign fingers’ as also being responsible.”

NBC News correspondent Ayman Mohyeldin put the responsibility for the violence on Egypt as a whole..

“Those responsible for the violence at Wednesday’s game were Egyptians. Period.
Now, they could have been instigated, motivated and, even more sinisterly, hired to carry out these attacks on each other. But in the end, they were all fellow countrymen...”