The Africa Cup of Nations semi-final between Ghana and
hosts Equatorial Guinea was described as a "war zone" after play was
suspended for more than 30 minutes because of crowd trouble.
Players ducked bottles thrown from the stands, Ghana
fans sought safety behind a goal, riot police used tear gas and a helicopter
hovered over the stadium.
"It's now like a war zone," the Ghana
Football Association (GFA) tweeted, claiming "barbaric acts of
vandalism" and "unprovoked violent attacks" had taken place
inside the stadium.
When play resumed, Ghana sealed a 3-0 win to reach
Sunday's final, where they will play Ivory Coast, who beat DR Congo 3-1 on
Wednesday.
Trouble flared at half-time between Ghana and
Equatorial Guinea.
The Ghana FA tweeted as the action unfolded
Ghana players had to be protected by riot police using
plastic shields as they left the field, already 2-0 up in the tie.
The second half was then halted eight minutes from
time when Ghana supporters sought sanctuary on the field after coming under
attack.
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After play was suspended in the second half, riot
police closed in on fans in order to restore peace
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Confederation of African Football (CAF) officials had
used the public address system to threaten to call off the game if the crowd
did not stop pelting Ghana's players.
Ghana FA president Kwesi Nyantakyi tried to play down
events after the game, insisting: "I don't think this is a fair commentary
of Africa. This has been a very successful tournament and
this isolated incident of violence will leave a slur on the reputation of
African football. It is very unfortunate and it doesn't deserve
that."
Nyantakyi added that he felt spectators were to blame.
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Objects removed from the pitch by BBC reporter Piers
Edwards
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"The trouble began before half-time, with fans
angry at some refereeing decisions. Bottles were thrown onto the pitch and the
Ghana players were forced to leave the pitch at half-time under a tunnel made
of riot shields. The bottle throwing continued after the break.
"Soon after the third goal went in, a section of
Ghana fans pushed through a gate and made it onto the running track behind the
goal. With them so close to the pitch, the match was stopped. Equatorial Guinea
players pleaded with fans to stop throwing objects but to no avail.
"A police helicopter tried to intimidate fans by
flying just 20 or 30 metres above their heads. Then police moved in with tear
gas and batons to move the fans away. The press box emptied, too, as the tear
gas spread.
"The
Ghana fans were eventually guided to an empty area of the stadium and the match
restarted for a token few minutes."
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Ghanaian fans huddled together on the running tracks,
away from the stands, as bottles and other objects lie on the running track
next to the pitch
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