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Thursday, 15 June 2006 |
More than 400 arrests at Germany v Poland World Cup match
More than 400 people were arrested after clashes around the World Cup match between Germany and Poland, police have said.
Most of those arrested have been released after a night in the cells but over 100 still face investigation.
Police said trouble started up before the match when they tried to arrest "violent hooligans in the city centre".
A central square was cordoned off and bottles were thrown at police in the worst trouble so far at the World Cup and a police officer and 32 fans were injured in the clashes but authorities say the pre-emptive operation to arrest "problem fans" before the game had been "successful".
Commissioner Hans Schulze said about 100 of those arrested were believed to be hooligans and the rest were fans who had had too much to drink.
About two hours before the evening match began, the happy mood in the sunshine in Dortmund's central Alter Markt square darkened when German skinheads wearing black T-shirts began to behave aggressively, a police spokesman told Reuters and about 120 fans threw fireworks, bottles and chairs at police.
The match - which Germany won 1-0 - had long been expected as a potential source of trouble, because of the two countries' wartime past and a recent history of football-related violence.
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Last Updated ( Monday, 19 June 2006 )
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