Crush kills 29 pupils taking exams after blast in Central Africa
BANGUI — Twenty-nine children who were taking their school exams in the Central African Republic have been killed in a crush after a nearby explosion caused panic, a hospital director told the BBC.
The blast, on the second day of the high-school finals on Wednesday, occurred at an electricity transformer, said Abel Assaye from the Bangui community hospital.
"The noise of the explosion, combined with smoke" caused alarm among the almost 6,000 students sitting the baccalaureate at a school in the capital, Bangui, local radio station Ndeke Luka reported.
President Faustin-Archange Touadéra has declared a period of national mourning.
He also ordered that the more than 280 who were wounded in the crush get free treatment in hospital.
Students from five different schools in the capital had gone to the Lycée Barthélémy Boganda to sit the baccalaureate exam.
The education ministry said the explosion happened after power was restored at the electricity transformer, located on the ground floor of the main building, that had been undergoing repairs.
"I also offer our sincere condolences to the parents of the affected candidates and wish a speedy recovery to the injured candidates," Education Minister Aurelien-Simplice Kongbelet-Zimgas said in a statement.
He also announced the suspension of further exams.
A female survivor spoke to the BBC.
"I don't even remember what happened. We were in the exam room and when I heard a noise, I immediately fell into a daze," she said. "Since then, I have had a pain in my pelvis that is causing me a lot of problems."
Radio France Internationale spoke to another student whose face was covered in blood after he had climbed out of a window.
Magloire explained that the blast happened during the history and geography exam.
"The students wanted to save their lives, and as they fled, they saw death because there were so many people and the door was really small. Not everyone could get out," he told RFI.
The CAR continues to face political instability and security challenges.
Government forces, backed by Russian mercenaries, are battling armed groups threatening to overthrow Touadéra's administration. — BBC
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Saudi Gazette
4 hours ago
- Saudi Gazette
Israeli strike at Gaza market kills 18 Palestinians, witnesses say
Israeli strike at Gaza market kills 18 Palestinians, witnesses say GAZA — At least 18 Palestinians have been killed after an Israeli drone strike targeted a Hamas police unit attempting to assert control over a market in the city of Deir al-Balah in central Gaza, a doctor and eyewitnesses told the BBC. Eyewitnesses said Israeli drones fired at members of a Hamas police force, dressed in civilian clothing and wearing masks, who were confronting vendors they accused of price gouging and selling goods looted from aid trucks. The Hamas-run Ministry of Interior condemned the strike, accusing Israel of committing "a new crime against a police unit tasked with maintaining public order". The BBC has contacted the Israeli military for comment. One eyewitness told the BBC clashes broke out on Thursday after police confronted the vendors, with the unit commander shouting: "Either sell at a fair price or we will confiscate the goods."Some of the vendors then "pulled out handguns and one man had a Kalashnikov", the eyewitness drones then fired two missiles, local residents footage from the aftermath shows bodies strewn on the ground and panicked shoppers screaming, as ambulances rush to attend to those injured.A doctor at Deir al-Balah's Al-Aqsa Hospital told the BBC 18 bodies were brought to the morgue there. It was not immediately clear how many of those killed were police incident came as civilians in Gaza continued to struggle to access food, with near daily shootings reported at and around US and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) distribution sites in south and central Gaza, and the limited goods available in markets selling for highly inflated GHF - which has been accused of violating humanitarian principles by international aid groups - received a further $30m in funding on Thursday from the US, which has supported Israeli efforts to see it become the largest aid organisation in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday accused Hamas of "once again taking control of humanitarian aid... and stealing it from civilians" in northern Gaza, as he gave the military two days to devise an "action plan" to prevent came after video footage was filmed on Wednesday of a truck convoy carrying aid into northern Gaza, after entering through the Zikim gate, with armed and masked men on far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir shared the video on social media, saying Hamas was "taking control of the food and goods" and calling on Netanyahu to halt the entry of aid into has denied stealing or profiting from aid, and Gaza's higher committee for tribal affairs - a non-Hamas affiliated committee created during the war - also dismissed Israel's "false claims" in a statement on Thursday."The securing of aid has been carried out purely through tribal efforts," it a warehouse in Gaza City on Thursday, thousands of aid parcels were political officials were present but said their role was "supervisory", with an NGO in charge of distributing some 6,000 food parcels."This morning, when I woke up to the message telling me to go get aid, all my children, young and old, started singing and dancing with joy. I pray to God that this blessing remains with us," one woman waiting for food there on Thursday, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced its first medical shipment into Gaza since 2 March had been delivered on trucks carrying medical supplies, 2,000 units of blood, and 1,500 units of plasma were transported without any looting "despite the high-risk conditions", WHO's chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus added the amount was "only a drop in the ocean".The blood and plasma were delivered to Nasser Medical Complex for onward distribution to hospitals "facing critical shortages amid a growing influx of injuries, many linked to incidents at food distribution sites", he Thursday's strike at the market, at least 14 Palestinians had been killed and dozens injured in Israeli military attacks across Gaza since midnight, a spokesperson for the Hamas-run Civil Defence teams evacuated 14 bodies, including those of three Palestinians who were waiting for humanitarian aid near the Wadi Gaza bridge close to the Netzarim corridor in central Gaza.A medical source at Al-Awda Hospital nearby confirmed that three Palestinians were killed and several others injured by Israeli gunfire near the Wadi Gaza said Israeli drones opened fire at a big crowd of civilians reportedly waiting for humanitarian aid at the time of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) told the BBC that overnight, a gathering was identified in an area adjacent to troops in the Netzarim corridor, and troops fired warning shots to prevent suspects from approaching IDF said it was aware of reports regarding the number of injured individuals in the area, but said an initial inquiry suggested the number does not align with the IDF's information. However, the details of the incident are under additional review, the IDF five people were killed in an Israeli air strike on a school sheltering displaced families in western Gaza the Al-Mawasi area of Khan Younis, in the south of the Strip, five members of the Abu Arab family were killed when an Israeli air strike hit a tent sheltering displaced persons. Another Palestinian was also killed in a strike that hit a tent in were wounded in the IDF said it was looking into these reports, but requested specific coordinates and times. In general, the IDF said it was "operating to dismantle Hamas military capabilities".The Israeli military launched a campaign in Gaza in response to Hamas's 7 October 2023 attack on Israel, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken least 56,259 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry. — BBC
Saudi Gazette
5 hours ago
- Saudi Gazette
Crush kills 29 pupils taking exams after blast in Central Africa
BANGUI — Twenty-nine children who were taking their school exams in the Central African Republic have been killed in a crush after a nearby explosion caused panic, a hospital director told the BBC. The blast, on the second day of the high-school finals on Wednesday, occurred at an electricity transformer, said Abel Assaye from the Bangui community hospital. "The noise of the explosion, combined with smoke" caused alarm among the almost 6,000 students sitting the baccalaureate at a school in the capital, Bangui, local radio station Ndeke Luka reported. President Faustin-Archange Touadéra has declared a period of national mourning. He also ordered that the more than 280 who were wounded in the crush get free treatment in hospital. Students from five different schools in the capital had gone to the Lycée Barthélémy Boganda to sit the baccalaureate exam. The education ministry said the explosion happened after power was restored at the electricity transformer, located on the ground floor of the main building, that had been undergoing repairs. "I also offer our sincere condolences to the parents of the affected candidates and wish a speedy recovery to the injured candidates," Education Minister Aurelien-Simplice Kongbelet-Zimgas said in a statement. He also announced the suspension of further exams. A female survivor spoke to the BBC. "I don't even remember what happened. We were in the exam room and when I heard a noise, I immediately fell into a daze," she said. "Since then, I have had a pain in my pelvis that is causing me a lot of problems." Radio France Internationale spoke to another student whose face was covered in blood after he had climbed out of a window. Magloire explained that the blast happened during the history and geography exam. "The students wanted to save their lives, and as they fled, they saw death because there were so many people and the door was really small. Not everyone could get out," he told RFI. The CAR continues to face political instability and security challenges. Government forces, backed by Russian mercenaries, are battling armed groups threatening to overthrow Touadéra's administration. — BBC
Saudi Gazette
5 hours ago
- Saudi Gazette
Slovaks veto Russia sanctions at EU Council
BRUSSELS — Thursday's EU Council summit suffered a huge setback after Robert Fico, Slovakia's prime minister, announced he would maintain his veto on the next round of sanctions against Russia, which diplomats hoped to approve on Friday. Fico's opposition involves a separate matter: the European Commission's proposed phase-out of Russian fossil fuels, including oil and gas, which Slovakia, as well as Hungary, continues to be dependent on. Fico met with Ursula von der Leyen on Thursday morning to discuss his reservations, including his fear that Gazprom, Russia's gas monopoly, would file a billion-euro lawsuit if his country breaks up its long-term gas contract. The Commission, however, says the proposed bans would act as "force majeure" to avoid damages in court. But Fico did not seem convinced. "Therefore, this issue must be resolved first: let's define the solution, and only then can we discuss further sanctions packages," Fico said in a video message posted on his Facebook account shortly after 18.00 CET. "If our proposal to postpone the vote is not accommodated, the Slovak ambassador will receive a clear instruction to veto the adoption of the 18th sanctions package." Meanwhile, the 27 leaders agreed to disagree on what to do next with the review of the EU-Israel Association Agreement, which found "indications" that Israel had breached its human rights obligations with its actions in Gaza and the West Bank. The highly anticipated review was requested in May by a group of 17 countries. Thursday's summit was the first time that leaders discussed the findings face-to-face. But sharp divisions in the room, from Spain to Germany, prevented any specific outcome. Instead, leaders asked their foreign ministers to continue the internal process "as appropriate" when they meet in Brussels on 15 July. During that meeting, High Representative Kaja Kallas is expected to present potential follow-up options, even if none of them are likely to gather the necessary qualified majority to move forward. Exasperation is growing: Slovenia's prime minister raised the prospect of forming a coalition of the willing to put "real pressure" on Israel if the bloc failed to act as one. — Euronews
