125 dead after crowd crush at Indonesian football match

Police used teargas in response to a pitch invasion by rioting fans, causing a crush among panicked spectators.

Officers and organisers are facing scrutiny over the tragedy, including questions over the use of teargas inside the venue, which is contrary to Fifa guidance.

The incident occurred after a match in which the Javanese club Arema were defeated by their rivals Persebaya Surabaya at Kanjuruhan stadium in Malang regency, East Java on Saturday night.

Many people were crushed and suffocated when they ran to one exit, Afinta said.

A hospital director told local TV that one victim was aged five.

Officials earlier said the death toll had been 174, but revised this figure down on Sunday evening, saying they had cross-referenced data from 10 hospitals. A further 320 people were injured.

Social media footage and images showed chaotic scenes in which fans clambered to escape thick clouds of teargas, some trying to carry other injured spectators to safety.

Teargas should only be used to disperse crowds when widespread violence had occurred and when other methods had failed, and people had to be warned of its use and allowed to disperse, Amnesty said.

Local reports said as many as 3,000 spectators had stormed the pitch. Further clashes occurred outside the stadium, with vehicles, including a police truck, torched.

The Indonesian government apologised for the disaster and promised to investigate its circumstances.

Persebaya Surabaya fans were not allowed to buy tickets for the game due to fears of violence between fans of the longstanding rivals.

Mahfud MD said organisers ignored the recommendation of authorities to hold the match in the afternoon instead of the evening.

Violence between football fans is a long-running problem in Indonesia. Seventy-eight people have died in football-related accidents over the past 28 years, according to government figures given to Channel News Asia in June.

The Indonesian football association (PSSI) said it would investigate what happened.

Some of the worst other stadium disasters include a 1989 crush at Hillsborough in the UK, which led to the deaths of 97 Liverpool fans, and the 2012 Port Said stadium tragedy in Egypt where 74 people died in clashes.

Reuters and Agence France-Presse contributed to this report