Egyptian authorities have decided to allow soccer matches to resume in closed stadiums without fans following a 40-day mourning period.

Play was suspended this month because of a deadly stampede of supporters in eastern Cairo.

State news agency MENA says the Cabinet decided to task a joint commission between the Ministries of Interior, Youth, and Sports, as well as the Egypt's soccer association, to restart league play.

Authorities say at least 19 people were killed this month when police fired tear gas into a crowd of fans waiting in a fenced, narrow corridor trying to enter a match between Cairo teams Zamalek and ENPPI. Many of the dead suffocated or were crushed in the melee.

It was the deadliest act of soccer-related violence in Egypt since 2012.