At Least 80 Killed, Dozens Injured, in Yemen Stampede

As per reports from Houthi authorities and media outlets, the capital of Yemen has witnessed a stampede that has resulted in a minimum of 80 deaths while several individuals have suffered from various degrees of bodily harm. The stampede, just days before Eid, triggered nationwide anger.

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The stampede happened on Wednesday evening, in Sanaa, Yemen, whereby an extensive gathering of people converged upon a school with the intention of procuring a philanthropic sum of $10, offered by traders commemorating the concluding days of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. The incident involved hundreds of individuals.

According to witnesses Abdel-Rahman Ahmed and Yahia Mohsen, armed members of the Houthi group discharged their weapons in the air as an attempt of controlling the crowd. This action resulted in an inadvertent disconnection of an electrical circuit, causing an explosive reaction and triggering hysteria amongst the gathering of individuals present.

The visual content disseminated by the Al Masirah television channel affiliated with the Houthis depicted a distressing scene, wherein corpses were tightly assembled while individuals resorted to climbing on one another in their attempts to navigate through the area.

Various photographs, released by the Houthis, evince the presence of stains of blood, scattered articles of footwear, and remnants of attire belonging to those who have been affected, as investigators were observed scrutinizing the locale.

According to a Houthi security official, in excess of 300 individuals sustained injuries. As per the hospital deputy director, Hamdan Bagheri, no fewer than 73 injured were transported to the al-Thowra Hospital located in Sanaa. The families of the affected individuals hastened to the medical facilities in search of their kin.

The Houthi-controlled Ministry of Interior’s spokesperson Brig Abdel-Khaleq al-Aghri described the incident as “tragic” blaming the “random distribution” of funds without coordination with local authorities.

The Houthi faction declared their intent to offer monetary compensation in the amount of approximately $2,000 to families that have suffered the loss of a relative, and approximately $400 to those who sustained injuries.