Nearly 80 Yemenis perish in a Ramadan crush at a Sanaa school.

At least 78 people have been killed in a crush at a school in Yemen's rebel-held capital, Sanaa, during a charity event for Ramadan. The incident began when hundreds of people crowded into a narrow street in the Bab al-Yemen area late on Wednesday to get handouts of $9 (£7) from a merchant. Video showed people screaming for help and others trying to pull them free. Later footage appeared to show dozens of bodies on the ground, as well as shoes and clothing strewn over steps. Officials from the rebel Houthi movement accused organisers of failing to co-ordinate with local authorities and said they had been detained. Yemen has been devastated by a civil war that escalated in 2015, when the Iran-aligned Houthis seized control of large parts of the west of the country from the internationally-recognised government and a Saudi-led coalition intervened in an effort to restore its rule. Poor people made their way to the Maeen School in central Sanaa on Wednesday night after being told that a local merchant would be handing out zakat The Saudi-led coalition's military campaign against the Houthi rebels and blockade of the country caused a crush when the main gate of the school was opened, leading to overcrowding and a crush when the gate was opened. Two witnesses reported that Houthi forces fired into the air in an attempt to crowd control, but witnesses told the BBC that they fired shots into the air after the crush began in order to clear a path to the casualties. Thirteen people were in a critical condition in hospital on Thursday, while the rest were discharged after receiving treatment. The president of the Houthis' Supreme Political Council, Mahdi al-Mashat, expressed his condolences to the victims' families and ordered the formation of a committee to investigate the incident. The head of the Houthis' General Zakat Authority meanwhile said it would pay $2,000 (£1,600) to each family who lost a relative, while the injured would get around $400 (£322).