At least 78 people were killed and dozens more were injured in a stampede in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, Houthi officials said on Thursday.
The Houthi Interior Ministry said dozens of people were taken to nearby hospitals.
The Houthi-run broadcaster Ali Masirah TV cited the director of health in Sanaa as saying that 13 of those injured were in critical condition.
How did the stampede happen?
The stampede broke out at an event to distribute financial aid in the Old City in the center of Sanaa.
Hundreds of people had entered a school to receive donations at the aid event. Two eyewitnesses told Reuters the sums given there amounted to 5,000 Yemeni riyals (€18, $20) per person.
Following the stampede, officials quickly sealed off the school where the event was held and barred people from approaching.
The Interior Ministry said the event was not coordinated with local authorities. It said that it had detained two organizers and an investigation was underway.
“Dozens of people were killed due to a stampede during a random distribution of sums of money by some merchants,” the ministry said.
A spokesman for the ministry described the event as “tragic.”
The Associated Press (AP) cited an eyewitness as saying that Houthi officials shot in the air in an attempt to control the crowd, which caused panic leading to a stampede.
How did the Houthis come to control Yemen’s capital?
Iranian-backed Houthi rebels have controlled Sanaa since 2014 when the rebel group ousted Yemen’s internationally recognized government.
A Saudi-led coalition intervened in 2015, turning the conflict into a proxy war between Riyadh and Tehran.
Yemen’s civil war has killed over 150,000 people and created one of the world’s most severe humanitarian disasters.
Earlier this month, a Saudi delegation arrived in Yemen to negotiate a truce with the Houthis. On April 14, the two sides began a prisoner swap, exchanging nearly 900 detainees.
sdi/sms (AP, AFP, Reuters)
Article source: https://www.dw.com/en/yemen-stampede-kills-at-least-78-injures-dozens-in-sanaa/a-65379264?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf