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Sanaa, Yemen — 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.
A video broadcast by the Huthi rebel’s Al Masirah TV channel showed a cluster of bodies packed together, with people climbing on top of each other to try to make their way through.
Many had their mouths covered by other people’s hands, the rest of their bodies engulfed by the dense crowd, the footage showed.
