As violence and a rush broke out during a football game in the Indonesian league, authorities used tear gas to break up the fights, resulting in at least 129 fatalities and 180 injuries.
Following Arema’s 3-2 loss in the match at Malang Regency, East Java, fans of the two Javanese teams and longstanding rivals fought.
According to East Java Police Chief Nico Afinta, the tussle between these rivals started just after the game concluded late on a Saturday night, forcing the police to use tear gas, which terrified the crowd.
Countless people raced to an exit gate to escape the tear gas, according to reliable sources. 34 people died almost immediately as a result of suffocation, trampling, and other factors amid the turmoil.
According to the East Java Police Chief, more than 300 persons were carried by ambulance to nearby hospitals for medical assistance, but many of them died both in route and while getting care.
Afinta feared that the death toll will increase further since the conditions of many of the approximately 180 injured people were worsening.
Later, a police official said that 129 people had died among which was a 5-year-old in one of the deadliest athletic stadium accidents ever.
The event has damaged the reputation of the Indonesian football association (PSSI) in the football community and among sports generally. PSSI apologized for the incident and announced that investigations had begun.
