One dead and dozens injured after a stampede in front of a stadium in Iraq

One person died and “dozens” were injured Thursday in a stampede in front of a soccer stadium in Iraq where the final of the Gulf Cup will be playedreported medical and security sources.

Thousands of fans without tickets crowded from the early morning in front of the gates of the Basra stadium (south) hoping to attend the match between Iraq and Oman which is due to start at 7:00 p.m. (4:00 p.m. GMT).

“There is one death and dozens of minor injuries,” said a medical source who requested anonymity.

An official from the Ministry of the Interior confirmed the balance, explaining that the crowd was due to “a large number of fans, in particular people without entrance tickets, who gathered from the morning and tried to enter” in the stadium.

According to an AFP photographer inside the sports complex, the gates were closed when the stampede took place. He said he heard sirens from numerous ambulances arriving to help the injured. In photos published on social networks, it can be seen how a human tide tries to reach the stadium.

Iraq, a country battered by four decades of conflict, bet heavily on the 25th Gulf Soccer Cup in Basra to recover its image, after years without being able to organize international matches due to security conditions.

It is the first time since 1979 that the Gulf Cup, a biennial event, has been held on Iraqi soil.

But various logistical problems have cast a shadow over the tournament since the opening ceremony two weeks ago. Thousands of fans, some of them in possession of tickets, and properly accredited journalists were refused entry for no precise reason.

The tournament brings together eight countries (Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Yemen and the United Arab Emirates) and Iraq managed to qualify for the final, to be held on Thursday night (4:00 p.m. GMT) against Oman. (YO)