Guinea soccer stadium stampede kills at least 56, officials say, including several children

Conakry, Guinea — Fifty-six people were killed and several injured in a stampede at a soccer stadium in southern Guinea after clashes between fans, the West African nation’s military government said Monday. Authorities were conducting an investigation to determine who was responsible for Sunday’s stampede, Communications Minister Fana Soumah said in a statement read on national television.

Among the victims were several children, according to local media and a coalition of political parties.

The stampede broke out Sunday afternoon at the Nzerekore city stadium during the final of a local tournament between teams Labe and Nzerekore in honor of Guinean military leader Mamadi Doumbouya, Guinea’s prime minister said , Amadou Oury Bah, on social networks.

“During the stampede, casualties were reported,” Bah said, without elaborating. Regional authorities were working to restore calm in the area, he added.

Local media reported that security forces had tried to use tear gas to restore calm after the chaos that followed a disputed penalty.

“This (disputed penalty) angered the supporters who threw stones. This is how the security services used tear gas,” reported Media Guinea, a local news website. He said several of the dead were children, while some of the injured who were being treated at a regional hospital were in critical condition.

Videos appearing to be from the scene showed fans in one section of the stadium shouting and protesting the refereeing before clashes broke out as people poured onto the pitch. People ran to try to escape the stadium, many of them jumping a high fence.

Other videos showed many people lying on the ground in what appeared to be a hospital, while a crowd gathered nearby, some tending to the injured.

An opposition political coalition known as the National Alliance for Alternative and Democracy called for an investigation. He said the tournament had been organized to garner support for the “illegal and inappropriate” political ambitions of the country’s military leader.

Guinea has been run by the army since the soldiers ousted President Alpha Conde in 2021. It is one of a growing number of West African countries, including evil, Niger i Burkina Fasowhere the military has seized power and delayed the return to civilian rule in a region that has come to be known as Impact belt of Africa.

Doumbouya, who ousted the president three years ago, said he was preventing the country from descending into chaos and chastised the previous government for broken promises. However, he has been criticized for not living up to the expectations he raised.