A deadly stampede at the Maha Kumbh Mela, the world’s largest religious gathering, left at least seven people dead and dozens injured in the early hours of Wednesday, according to an unnamed official. However, local authorities have yet to confirm the casualties.
The incident occurred as massive crowds rushed to take a pre-dawn dip at the confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna, and the mythical Saraswati rivers—a ritual believed to absolve sins and grant liberation from the cycle of life and death.
Witnesses described scenes of chaos, with people falling and being trampled as crowds surged toward the river. "We saw people falling, lying on top of one another, and crushing others in search of a safe place," said Shweta Tripathi, a festival attendee from Uttar Pradesh.
By Tuesday, nearly 200 million people had attended the 2025 Maha Kumbh Mela, which is expected to draw around 400 million over its six-week duration. Visuals from the site showed scattered belongings, distressed attendees searching for lost items, and some carrying containers filled with holy water.
Abhishek Kumar, another attendee, recounted the lack of crowd control. "Some were returning after their dip while others rushed forward, leading to a crush. There was no coordination," he told ABP news. He and others carried injured women to a makeshift hospital, unsure if they had survived.
Authorities have not yet issued an official statement on the cause of the stampede or the number of casualties.
The U.S. and China are locked in a growing struggle over critical minerals, the materials that power everything from electric vehicles and microchips ...
Greek authorities have arrested a member of the armed forces on suspicion of leaking highly sensitive military information to foreign handlers alleged...
Norwegian prosecutors have launched a corruption investigation into former prime minister Thorbjørn Jagland after newly released documents linked to ...
Russian troops in Ukraine have lost access to Starlink internet terminals after Kyiv and SpaceX moved to block unauthorised Russian use, a disruption ...
Mexican federal officers detained Mayor Diego Rivera on Thursday during coordinated raids that also led to the arrest of the municipality’s security...
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on Tuesday (February 3) one day after the U.S. and India signed a trade deal.
India says it's going to stop buying Russian oil and lower trade barriers after U.S. President Donald Trump announced a trade deal with India on Monday (2 February) that cuts American tariffs on Indian goods to 18% from 50%.
Two Nipah infections involving health workers in India have triggered heightened screening across Southeast Asia as authorities move to prevent the high fatality virus from spreading beyond the country.
A private charter flight carrying one of India’s most prominent regional politicians ended in disaster on Wednesday morning, plunging the nation’s wealthiest state into a sudden political crisis and shock.
Rivers and reservoirs across Spain and Portugal were on the verge of overflowing on Wednesday as a new weather front pounded the Iberian peninsula, compounding damage from last week's Storm Kristin.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) unveiled a new underground ballistic missile base on Wednesday (4 February), just over a day before the start of mediated nuclear negotiations with the United States, slated for Friday in Oman.
Morocco has evacuated more than 100,000 people from four provinces after heavy rainfall triggered flash floods across several northern regions, the Interior Ministry said on Wednesday.
A second group of Palestinians receiving medical treatment arrived in Egypt from Gaza via the Rafah border crossing on Tuesday (3 February).
The World Health Organization has added the Nipah virus to its list of the world’s top 10 priority diseases, alongside COVID-19 and the Zika virus, warning that its epidemic potential highlights the global risk posed by fast-spreading outbreaks.
The U.S. and China are locked in a growing struggle over critical minerals, the materials that power everything from electric vehicles and microchips to missiles and advanced radar systems, as both sides move to secure control over supply chains that underpin economic and military power.
Greek authorities have arrested a member of the armed forces on suspicion of leaking highly sensitive military information to foreign handlers allegedly linked to China.
Norwegian prosecutors have launched a corruption investigation into former prime minister Thorbjørn Jagland after newly released documents linked to Jeffrey Epstein allegedly showed possible benefit transfers during Jagland’s time in senior international roles.
Russian troops in Ukraine have lost access to Starlink internet terminals after Kyiv and SpaceX moved to block unauthorised Russian use, a disruption Ukrainian officials described as a major blow to Moscow’s battlefield operations.
Mexican federal officers detained Mayor Diego Rivera on Thursday during coordinated raids that also led to the arrest of the municipality’s security director and the heads of public works and the land registry.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment