More than 80 people were killed and hundreds injured in a crush at a charity distribution event in war-torn Yemen on Thursday, Huthi officials said, one of the deadliest stampedes in a decade.

The latest tragedy to strike the Arabian Peninsula’s poorest country came days ahead of the Muslim holiday Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.

At least “85 were killed and more than 322 were injured” after the stampede in the Bab al-Yemen district of the capital, a Huthi security official said.

“Women and children were among the dead,” he told AFP on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to the media.
A second health official confirmed the toll.

An AFP correspondent in Huthi-controlled Sanaa said the incident took place inside a school where aid was being distributed.

Hundreds of people in the poverty-hit country had gathered to receive handouts, according to witnesses.বিস্তারিত