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People stampeded at an event to distribute financial aid in the Yemeni capital late Wednesday, and at least 78 people were killed and dozens more injured, officials said.
The crush happened in the Old City in central Sanaa when hundreds of poor people gathered at an event organized by traders, according to the Houthi Interior Minister.
The ministry’s spokesman, Abdel-Khaleq al-Aghri, blamed the disaster on the “random distribution” of funds without coordination with local authorities.
Dozens of victims were taken to nearby hospitals. Motaher al-Marouni, a senior health official in Sanaa, gave the death toll, according to the Houthis’ Al-Masirah satellite TV channel.
Houthi rebels quickly closed the school where the event was organized and banned people, including journalists, from approaching.
The wire exploded, causing panic
Eyewitnesses, Abdel-Rahman Ahmed and Yahia Mohsen, said armed Houthis fired into the air in an attempt to control the crowd, apparently hitting a power line and causing it to explode. That caused panic and people started stampeding, he said.
The Interior Ministry said it had detained two organizers and was investigating.
The Yemeni capital is controlled by the Iran-backed Houthis, who fell from their northern stronghold in 2014 and ousted their internationally recognized government.
This prompted the Saudi-led coalition to intervene in 2015 to try to restore the internationally recognized government.
The conflict has in recent years turned into a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran.
The war has killed more than 150,000 people, including combatants and civilians, and has created one of the world’s worst humanitarian disasters.
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