Soccer fan shot dead by policeman

November 24, 2006 11:52 IST

A policeman shot dead a Paris St Germain fan and seriously injured another late on Thursday following the French team's defeat by Hapoel Tel Aviv in the UEFA Cup, police sources said.

Early indications suggested the plainclothes policeman came to the rescue of a French supporter of the Israeli team who was attacked by PSG fans outside the stadium.

A group of up to 150 fans then turned on the policeman.

At first he let off a tear gas canister to try to disperse his assailants, then fired his gun, killing one man immediately and injuring another.

Sources said the PSG fans appeared to be far-right sympathisers and were chanting "France for the French" as they confronted the Hapoel supporter. The lone policeman was black.

The Paris prosecutor's office was expected to open a formal investigation into the killing on Friday.

The explosion of violence came after PSG suffered a shock 4-2 loss to their Tel Aviv opponents.

Get Rediff News in your Inbox:

Source:

© Copyright 2024 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon.