Nation parties after Pharaohs win

Streets in Cairo were packed after news of the win came through

Hundreds of thousands of Egyptian football fans have taken to the streets after Egypt's victory in the Africa Cup of Nations football tournament.

The Pharaohs beat Cameroon in Accra, the Ghanaian capital, to retain the cup they won on home soil two years ago.

Sunday's 1-0 victory means Egypt have now won the cup a record sixth time.

Within seconds of the final whistle being blown, the Egyptian capital erupted into a cacophony of noise and a blur of light, our correspondent said.

Tour boats on the Nile sounded their horns in time to the chants of crowds pouring across bridges spanning Africa's longest river.

Fireworks lit up Cairo's night sky as jubilant fans climbed atop buses and cars, dancing and beating drums.

Celebrations are likely to continue for several days

In Giza, the massive eight-lane Arab League street was brought to a standstill as flag-waving crowds celebrated the Pharaohs' historic victory.

With people driving around and around roundabouts honking their car horns, some policemen joined in the festivities, the BBC's Ian Pannell reported from Cairo.

"I feel very happy and I'm going to party all night to celebrate," 19-year-old Cairo resident Mohammed Saeed told the AP news agency, his face painted in the national colours of red, white and black.

In the football-loving nation of 80m people, the celebrations are likely to continue for days to come, our correspondent adds.

'Disappointment'

But in the Cameroon capital, Yaounde, the trumpeting and whistle-blowing that had lasted during the match died down at the final whistle, reports the BBC's Randy Jo Sa'ah.

"It's a terrible disappointment," one fan said.

But he said the team had done well to reach the final and said he would go to the airport to welcome the players home.

"The way we started this competition, I didn't expect we could reach this level."