8 killed in Bangladesh stampede for handouts

Dhaka, Oct 21: At least eight people were killed and nearly 50 injured in stampedes in Bangladesh today while trying to grab clothes being handed out to the poor ahead of the Muslim Eid al-Fitr festival, police and witnesses said.

The stampedes occurred at Mymensingh, which is north of the capital, Dhaka, and in the coastal town of Patuakhali, they said.

The victims were mostly women and children.

Wealthy Muslims give out clothes and money to the poor at Eid time every year, in accordance with Islamic teachings, but the tradition often attracts unruly crowds.

Eid will be celebrated in Bangladesh, a country of 140 million mostly Muslim people, next week.

Reuters