ALBAWABA At least 11 people were killed in a crowd crush in Pakistan's southern city of Karachi Friday as a Ramadan alms donation sparked a stampede in the inflation-hit nation, police said.
Hundreds of women and children had rushed to collect free food and cash outside a factory in an industrial area of the southern port city on Friday.
At least 11 killed in Pakistan Ramadan donation stampedehttps://t.co/6ebeoZClDS
— GMA Integrated News (@gmanews) April 1, 2023
Business owners often hand out cash and food during the Islamic holy month, especially to the poor.
An initial report from police said nine women, aged between 40 and 80, and three children, aged 10 to 15, died in the crush.
A local administration official said 600 to 700 people were coralled in a small industrial compound.
At least 11 killed in Pakistan Ramadan donation stampede https://t.co/JDNvWWvWho via @FRANCE24
— David Fox (@gavafox) March 31, 2023
"When they opened the main gate, all the people rushed in," added 22-year-old Fatima Noor, whose sister died in the crush.
Pakistan has been wracked by economic turmoil for months, with the rupee crumbling and staple food prices shooting up nearly 50 percent as the country battles a balance of payments crisis which has forced it into bail-out talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
