Monsurat
In what is described one of the deadliest stadium disasters of all time, hundreds were killed in the early hours of today as a stampede erupted from the crowd as an Indonesian soccer match.
The Indonesian police reported that supporters of the Arema FC and Persebaya Surabaya, two of Indonesia’s major soccer teams, fought in the stands after home team Arema FC was defeated 3-2 at a game in the city of Malang in East Java.
Police fired tear gas, after the fight broke out, eliciting a stampede and scrambling for the exit which then resulted in cases of suffocation of several people, including two police officers.
Indonesian President, Joko Widodo has ordered all league matches be halted until investigations were completed. The Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) has suspended all matches scheduled for next week and banned Arema FC from hosting games for the rest of the season.
In a statement reported by CNN, FIFA President Gianni Infanito expressed condolences saying “the football world is in a state of shock”. He said “together with FIFA and the global football community, all our thoughts and prayers are with the victims, those who have been injured, together with the people of the Republic of Indonesia, the Asian Football Confederation, the Indonesian Football Association, and the Indonesian Football League, at this difficult time”.
The president of the host team, Gilang Widya Pramana, also apologized for the unfortunate incident.
GIPHY App Key not set. Please check settings