10 worst stampedes in the world

The stampede that left at least 85 dead and more than 322 injured in Sanaa on Thursday, during a charity event in the Yemeni capital, is among the deadliest crowd movements of the past ten years. Africa is unfortunately not left out.

Mecca: 2,300 dead

On September 24, 2015, a gigantic stampede at the site of the stoning of the stelae in Mina near Mecca, during the annual pilgrimage, left some 2,300 people dead, the deadliest disaster in the history of the Hajj.

Iran, which announced the death of 464 of its pilgrims, had implicated Saudi Arabia for its organization deemed faulty.

Pilgrims have explained the stampede by the closure of a road near the site of the stoning and the mismanagement by the security forces of the flow of the faithful. After Iran, Mali - with 282 dead - is the second most affected country.

South Korea: 159 dead

On the night of October 29-30, 2022, 159 people were killed and around 150 injured in a stampede in Seoul. They had come to celebrate Halloween among several thousand participants, mainly young revelers, in the narrow streets of a district of the South Korean capital.

Interior Minister Lee Sang-min was impeached by parliament three months later after facing heavy criticism over his handling of the disaster. A police investigation found negligence and lack of preparation.

Indonesia: 135 dead

On October 1, 2022, a crowd movement occurred in a football stadium in Malang (east of the island of Java) after the police wanted to repel supporters with tear gas, causing the death of 135 people, including more than forty children.

Many victims, seized with panic, were crushed or asphyxiated trying to use closed or too-narrow exit doors.

On March 16, a court sentenced a police officer to 18 months in prison but acquitted two others. The match organizer and his security manager were also convicted.

India: at least 115 dead

On October 13, 2013, a stampede on the sidelines of a religious festival near a temple in the district of Datia, in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh (center), left at least 115 dead, trampled, or drowned, and more than 110 wounded.

At the time of the accident, some 20,000 people were on a bridge spanning the Sindh River. According to local authorities, a rumor about a possible collapse of the bridge hit by a tractor generated a crowd movement.

Yemen: at least 85 dead

At least 85 people were killed and more than 322 injured, on the night of April 19-20, 2023, during a charity action in the capital Sanaa, at the hands of Houthi rebels, backed by Iran.

"Children are among the deceased", and about fifty injured are in serious condition, according to a security source who requested anonymity.

This crowd movement, which comes a few days before the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr, took place in a school in the old town district, where hundreds of people had gathered to receive financial aid.

Ivory Coast: at least 60 dead

On January 1, 2013, at least 60 people, many of them young people, died in a stampede when a huge crowd of spectators left the Plateau administrative district in Abidjan, after watching the New Year's Eve fireworks.

Iran: 56 dead

On January 7, 2020, a stampede in Kerman (southeast) during the funeral of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani, which was attended by a huge crowd, resulted in 56 deaths.

Qassem Soleimani, killed on January 3 by an American drone strike outside Baghdad airport, was considered a hero in the country.

Ethiopia: at least 52 dead

On October 2, 2016, at least 52 people died according to the authorities - at least 100, according to the opposition - in a crowd movement in Bishoftu (50 km south-east of Addis Ababa), after clashes with the police during the traditional Oromo Irreecha festival which marks the end of the rainy season.

Tanzania: 45 dead

On March 21, 2021, 45 people died in a stampede at the stadium in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania's economic capital, where a tribute to late President John Magufuli was being held.

Israel: 45 dead

On April 30, 2021, a stampede during the pilgrimage marking the Jewish holiday of Lag B'Omer at Mount Meron in northern Israel kills at least 45 people, shadowing the largest gathering in the country since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.