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No fewer than 78 people have died and 73 others injured after being stampeded in a school in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, where they had gathered to receive cash gifts from merchants to wrap up the Ramadan fasting season.
The stampede occurred late Wednesday evening in a school where hundreds of people had gathered for cash donations of about $10 per person, Houthi officials said.
Armed officials fired shots into the air to control the massive crowd, but one of the rounds hit an electrical line and caused it to burst, sending the locals scrambling for cover, according to witnesses Abdel-Rahman Ahmed and Yahia Mohsen, who spoke to The Associated Press about the incident.
Footage by Houthi officials showed scattered shoes and clothing lying on the ground as they tried to assess the level of damage after the stampede.
The merchants were blamed for the stampede by the interior ministry’s spokesperson, Abdel-Khaleq al-Aghri, who said that the “random distribution” of money without adequate planning and involvement from local authorities was to blame.
As investigations concerning the tragic incident are being conducted by the government, two merchants who funded the donations have been detained. Additionally, the Houthis have committed to pay $2000 in compensation to the families of the deceased and $400 to the injured.
