78 KILLED IN CRUSH AT RAMADAN CHARITY EVENT IN YEMEN’S CAPITAL SANAA

Thu 20 Apr 2023:

A crush at a school in Yemen’s capital Sanaa two days before the Eid al-Fitr festival claimed at least 78 lives, according to Houthi officials and media,

Hundreds of people poured into a classroom in Sanaa’s Bab al-Yemen neighborhood late on Wednesday, hoping to receive one of the $10 charitable donations that were being distributed by businesses to commemorate the end of Ramadan.

78 killed in crush at Ramadan charity event in Yemen's capital Sanaa

Witnesses told AP news agency Armed Houthis had fired into the air, in an attempt at crowd control, apparently hitting an electrical wire, which exploded and caused panic among those waiting

#اليمن #صنعاء pic.twitter.com/MZEJH9Zwdw

— INDEPENDENT PRESS (@IpIndependent) April 20, 2023

Houthi television shared a video of a crowded area on the messaging app Telegram, in which some people were shouting and screaming while others were reaching out to be pulled to safety. Security personnel tried to push people back and keep the mob under control.

Separate video from the capital-controlling Houthis showed bloodstains, shoes, and victims’ clothing lying on the ground as investigators looked around.

Witnesses Abdel-Rahman Ahmed and Yahia Mohsen told The Associated Press news agency that armed Houthis had fired into the air in an attempt at crowd control, apparently hitting an electrical wire, which exploded and caused panic among those waiting.

Independent Press however, could not independently ascertain the reasons behind the crush.

Brig Abdel-Khaleq al-Aghri, a spokesperson for the Houthi-run Ministry of Interior, called the occurrence “tragic” and blamed the “random distribution” of funding without consulting local authorities.

The ministry announced that the two merchants who organized the event had been jailed and that an investigation was ongoing. The Houthis declared they would give each family who lost a relative roughly $2,000 in compensation, while the injured would get about $400.

لا يوجد عند العرب شيء متماسك منذ بدء الخليقة حتى الآن سوى القهر.
– محمد الماغوط
👇
مقتل أكثر من ٨٠ شخصاً في صنعاء بسبب تدافعهم للحصول على ٢٠ $ من أحد المحسنين.#اليمن #صنعاء #السودان #عيد_الفطر_المبارك pic.twitter.com/3OPL36rPqU

— 𝐓𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐤 | طـارق (@Tarek_76_) April 20, 2023

According to hospital deputy director Hamdan Bagheri, at least 73 of the injured were transferred to the al-Thowra Hospital in Sanaa as families flocked to hospitals in search of their loved ones.

Yemen has been described by the UN as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. Nine years of war have killed thousands, destroyed the economy and left 21.6 million people – two-thirds of the country’s population – in dire need of humanitarian assistance. Tens of thousands of Yemenis are living in famine, according to the UN.

The country’s conflict began as a civil war in 2014, when Houthi forces stormed the capital Sanaa and toppled the internationally recognized and Saudi-backed government. It spiraled into a wider war in 2015 when a Saudi-led coalition intervened in an attempt to beat back the Houthis.

But it eventually became a proxy war between Iran – which has been accused of arming the Houthis – and Saudi Arabia, and the main arena for their competition for regional influence.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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