About 80 people were killled and several injured in a stampede in the Yemeni capital Sanaa during distribution of charitable donations in a school, reports said.

 

Thirteen of the injured were in critical conditions, Al Masirah TV television news outlet run by the Iran-aligned Houthi movement reported, citing the director of health in Sanaa, reported Reuters.

 

The stampede took place during the distribution of donations by merchants in the final days of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, the Houthi-controlled Ministry of Interior's spokesperson said in a statement.

 

Hundreds of people had crowded into a school to receive the donations, which amounted to 5,000 Yemeni riyals (about $9 per person), two witnesses involved in the rescue effort told Reuters.

 

A video posted by Houthi television on Telegram messaging app showed a crowd of people jammed together, some screaming and shouting and reaching out to be pulled to safety. Security staff fought to push people back and control the crowd, Reuters said.