Morocco food stampede leaves 15 dead

At least 15 dead and five wounded in a stampede in Morocco while food aid was distributed

At least 15 people have been killed and five others wounded in a stampede in Morocco during a food distribution operation on Sunday morning.

Most of the victims were women and elderly people.

Reports indicated that up to 40 people were injured, as hundreds of people gathered to collect baskets of food at the market in the small town, Sidi Boulaalam.

Sidi Boulaalam is an impoverished town with just over 8,000 inhabitants. It is about 40 miles from the coastal city of Essaouira.

Witnesses told local media that this year’s annual food aid distribution at the local market attracted a larger crowd than usual. The aid was being handed out by a private local charity.

"This year there were lots of people, several hundred people," a witness told AFP news agency.

"People shoved, they broke down the barriers," he said, adding that the injured had been evacuated to a hospital in Marrakesh.

The Moroccan Interior Ministry, which reported the death toll, instructed local authorities to help those affected, and that it had opened an investigation. It is still unclear what led to the stampede.

The Interior Minister, King Muhammed VI said that he would personally cover all medical and funeral costs.