MALANG: More or less 127 people were killed at an Indonesian football stadium on Saturday when fans invaded the ground and police used tear gas to disperse them. This ugly situation caused a stampede as a result of which 127 football fans lost their lives, authorities said.
The supporters of Arema FC stormed the ground at the Kanjuruhan stadium in Malang after their team lost 3-2 to Persebaya Surabaya, the first loss in more than two decades to their bitter rival.
Police, who characterised the unrest as “riots”, tried to persuade fans to return to the stands and fired tear gas after two officers were killed.
Many of the victims were trampled to death, according to police.
“In the incident, 127 people died, two of whom are police officers. Thirty-four people died inside the stadium and the rest died in hospital,” East Java police chief Nico Afinta said in a statement on Sunday.
Afinta said many people were crushed and suffocated when they ran to one exit.
Images captured from inside the stadium during the stampede showed huge amounts of tear gas and people clambering over fences. People were carrying injured spectators through the chaos.
