Yemen crowd crush reportedly leaves dozens killed or injured

A crowd crush at an event to distribute financial aid in Yemen’s capital killed at least 78 people while dozens more suffered injuries, a Houthi official has said.

The crush took place on Wednesday in the Old City in the centre of Sana’a when hundreds of people gathered at the event organised by merchants without coordination with local authorities, according to the Houthi-run interior ministry.

The ministry’s spokesperson blamed the disaster on the “random distribution” of funds without coordination with local authorities.

Dozens of casualties were taken to nearby hospitals. Motaher al-Marouni, a senior health official in Sana’a, revealed the death toll and said at least 13 more were seriously injured, according the Houthi’s Al-Masirah satellite TV channel. Officials told AFP the number of injured was more than 100.

Houthi rebels quickly sealed off the school where the event was organised and barred people, including journalists, from approaching.

Witnesses said armed Houthis shot in the air in an attempt to control the crowd, apparently striking an electrical wire and causing it to explode. That sparked panic and people began to run, they said.

The Houthi-run interior ministry said it had detained two organisers and an investigation was under way.

Yemen’s capital has been controlled by the Iranian-backed Houthis since they descended from their northern stronghold in 2014, and removed the internationally recognised government.

The Houthi move prompted a Saudi-led coalition to intervene in 2015 to try to restore the internationally recognised government.

The years long conflict has turned in recent years into a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran. The war has killed more than 150,000 people, including fighters and civilians, and created one of the world’s worst humanitarian disasters.

A thawing of relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran has allowed for mediation between the two sides and the proposal for an eight-month ceasefire.