According to the Houthi rebels, dozens of people were killed in a stampede in the capital Sanaa in Yemen. According to the Saba news agency operated by the Houthis, a spokesman for the local interior ministry said some traders distributed cash donations on Wednesday evening without prior coordination. This was followed by a mass panic with dozens of dead and injured. The director of the health authority, Mutahar al-Maruni, told the rebel-affiliated TV station Al-Masirah that at least 78 people were killed.
In videos intended to show the scenes after the incident, numerous bodies were lined up on the ground. The exact background as well as the exact number of fatalities initially remained unclear. The tragedy is believed to have happened at a donation distribution point in the Yemeni capital.
The head of the High Political Council, Mahdi al-Maschat, called for an investigation into the incident. A committee designated for this purpose arrived at the scene of the incident that evening, according to a Saba report. Two suspected dealers were arrested.
Yemen is located in the south of the Arabian Peninsula. The Shiite Houthi rebels have taken over large parts of northern Yemen there in their uprising that has been going on since 2014 and also control the capital Sanaa.
The rebels are supported by Shia-majority Iran. Saudi Arabia has been fighting the Houthis with allies alongside the government in the country since 2015. One of the worst humanitarian catastrophes in the world is taking place in Yemen, mainly due to the consequences of the civil war.