BEIJING, Feb. 5 -- Italy indefinitely suspended the country's international and domestic soccer matches Friday after a policeman was killed during clashes at a derby match between Sicilian clubs Catania and Palermo, authorities said.

    A 38-year-old police officer died shortly after a rioter tossed an explosive into his car, outside the Serie A match in Catania. The death was the second in little more than a week connected to an Italian soccer game.

    About 100 people were wounded, between officers and fans, in clashes led by hooded rioters who hurled fireworks and lashed out at police with metal bars. Police said they arrested nine people and had detained 23 others.

    The latest bloodshed stunned a nation that just last summer triumphantly celebrated its World Cup victory in Germany, and the government quickly called a high-level crisis meeting for today to hammer out emergency measures to halt the violence.

    The Italian soccer federation quickly declared that all the weekend's matches were suspended, then clarified that the suspension was indefinite and that it also applied to the national team.

    Italy had been scheduled to welcome Romania for a friendly Wednesday.

    The world champion is due to host Scotland in a Euro 2008 qualifier March 28. Trouble at Friday¡¯s match between Palermo and Catania began with smoke ¡ª partly from tear gas outside the stadium ¡ª suspending play for a half hour.

    Violent clashes between rioters and the police lasted for hours after the game, during which a large firecracker exploded in 38-year old police officer Filippo Raciti¡¯s face. He died as he arrived at hospital.

    Vicious circle

    The death came just six days after a club official died in a fight after an amateur match in the southern town of Luzzi.

    ¡°You can't be allowed to kill a policeman and leave two children as orphans just because you think you have the right to root for your team,¡± Salvatore Renda, a policeman who was wounded last night told Italian television.

    Pressure is building for tough steps to tackle the problem.

    Fiorentina goalkeeper Sebastien Frey said he is not surprised by the violence.

    ¡°There had already been several incidents with the referees last summer,¡± the Frenchman told sports daily L¡¯Equipe on Saturday. ¡°Now violence is back around the stadiums.¡±

    ¡°If we go on like this people will not come to the stadiums. We are in a vicious circle.¡±

    Raciti was the 13th person to be killed in or around Italy's soccer stadiums since 1962. The last fatality at a Serie A match happened in 1995 when a Genoa fan was stabbed to death before a game against AC Milan.