Nearly a hundred people were arrested and at least 18 injured during clashes between ultra supporters of Serbian and Croatian football clubs in Bosnia, police announced on Sunday. Violence broke out on Saturday evening when supporters of the Croatian club Hajduk Split clashed with supporters of the Serbian club Red Star Belgrade, in eastern Bosnia, according to a police statement.
The clashes took place outside Tuzla airport, about 80 kilometers northeast of Sarajevo. At least 18 people were injured during these clashes, including one seriously who is still in intensive care at Tuzla hospital.
Police arrested a total of 93 people, of whom 14 were remanded in custody and will be presented to the prosecution, police said. Among them are 11 Croatian nationals and three Bosniaks.
Local media report that the clashes broke out when supporters of the Serbian club, who were returning from Sweden where their team played a Europa League match against Malmö on Thursday, were attacked by Hajduk Split supporters who ambushed them at the airport.
Croatia and Serbia have long faced hooliganism. Relations have been frosty between the two Balkan nations since the 1990s war, during which Serbia supported Serbian rebels who opposed Croatian independence. A hatred that we find among football supporters. Matches between clubs from the two former Yugoslav republics are considered high risk.
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