More Than 170 Killed In Indonesia Soccer Stadium Stampede

At least 170 people were killed and many injured at a soccer match in Malang, Indonesia. The incident happened after a football match in East Java province between Arema FC, and Persebaya Surabaya ended on Saturday night.  

According to the police report, the supporters of the losing team invaded the pitch to express their frustration. Following this, Police fired tear gas to control the situation, which triggered a stampede in the stadium. 

The Arema FC supporters stormed the pitch after their team lost 3-2 to Persebaya Surabaya, the first loss to their rival in more than two decades. 

According to police information, 34 people died inside the stadium, while others died in a hospital. In addition, many people were crushed and suffocated when they ran to the exit gates. 

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One stampede video on Twitter showed massive amounts of tear gas and people clambering over fences.

According to a local television channel, President Joko Widodo said he had asked the national police chief to thoroughly investigate what happened. 

“I regret that this tragedy occurred,” Widodo said. “And I hope this is the last football tragedy in the country.”

The Indonesian government has apologized for the incident and promised to investigate the circumstances surrounding the stampede, said the report. 

Meanwhile, the Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI) has suspended all football matches for one week. 

PSSI has banned the Arema FC team from hosting home games for the rest of the season and said it would send an investigation team to Malang to establish the cause of the crush.