The Beitar Jerusalem soccer club experienced a sad and stormy evening Oct. 18 with its 1-0 defeat deep in overtime by its bitter enemy, Hapoel Tel Aviv. But the game will undoubtedly be remembered for the unprecedented violence in the bleachers rather than for the players’ performance.

It all began when Beitar’s latest acquisition — midfielder Kamsu Mara from Guinea — began warming up for his debut appearance on the field, prompting the displeasure of a group of radical Beitar fans due to his Muslim faith. Brawls broke out in the bleachers when some club fans cheered Mara, defying orders from the Ultras, who call themselves “La Familia” to refrain from encouraging the Muslim player.

“We were punched and kicked only because we encouraged the team. One of them screamed at me, 'Get out of here, there’s no room in the stands for women and for the handicapped,' and then kicked me,” a 23-year-old fan described her beating at the hands of the Ultras, recalling the fear she felt as she searched for her crutches and waited to be evacuated to hospital for treatment. Video footage of the incident clearly shows her being kicked in her injured leg, and quite a number of other fans including a soldier being attacked during the shameful violence by fans whose only sin was encouraging their team.

The violent scenes generated sweeping anger throughout Israel’s vibrant soccer world, prompting club owner Moshe Hogeg to post a clip in which he inquired about the injuries of the disabled fan and stated that as far as he was concerned, “La Familia is a terrorist organization.” He urged authorities to act now before it is too late.