France angers Moscow by detaining busload of suspected Russian soccer hooligans following attacks
Washington Post and Agence France-Presse | June 16, 2016 9:53 AM ET
French police fired tear gas as scuffles break out between British and Russian soccer fans, Friday, June 10, 2016
After 150 “extremely violent” Russian hooligans stalked the streets of Marseilles looking for British fans this past Saturday, bloodying them with truncheons and sometimes knives, French authorities had a straightforward response: They stopped a busload of the suspected hooligans on Tuesday, detaining all 43 people on board, as they left Marseilles for Russia’s next match in Lille.
French police swooped on the group, which included Alexander Shprygin, a far-right agitator and head of Russia’s football supporters’ association, and carried out identity checks as part of the investigation into the clashes.
The Russian Foreign Ministry responded in an equally blunt way: On Wednesday, it summoned the French ambassador to Moscow over what Russia is calling an unjust and discriminatory detention.
http://news.nationalpost.com/news/world/france-angers-moscow-by-detaining-busload-of-suspected-russian-soccer-hooligans-following-attacks
