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129 killed in Indonesia soccer stadium stampede

The Indonesia pitch invasion quickly turned deadly

AFP: Twitter


Indonesia has been rocked by one of the world's deadliest sporting stadium disasters.

Various news organisations are reporting that at least 129 people were killed when thousands of fans invaded the pitch and police fired tear gas that triggered a stampede.

The tragedy took place in the eastern city of Malang and also left 180 injured.

Arema FC supporters at the Kanjuruhan stadium stormed the pitch after their team lost 3-2 to the visiting team and bitter rivals, Persebaya Surabaya.

Police, who described the unrest as "riots", said they tried to persuade fans to return to the stands and fired tear gas after two officers were killed.

AFP reports that many of the victims were trampled or choked to death.