Mawazine music festival ends in tragedy
The stampede caused a fence to give way, killing five women, two teenagers and four men
RABAT (Agencies)
Eleven people were killed in a stampede at a stadium in the Moroccan capital Rabat overnight when thousands of spectators hurried to leave at the end of a concert wrapping up the city's landmark music festival.
The stampede caused a fence to give way, killing five women, two teenagers and four men. Forty people were injured, eight of them seriously.
The victims were among some 70,200 spectators at the Hay Nahda stadium to see home favorite Abdelaziz Stati sing at a concert which was part of the Mawazine (Rhythms) festival -- opened on May 15 by Australian pop icon Kylie Minogue.
"An investigation is under way to establish the exact causes and circumstances of the incident," the Interior Ministry said in a statement.
The concert was part of a week-long annual Mawazine music festival in Rabat which ended in the early hours of Sunday.
is one of a growing number of well-funded music festivals aimed at promoting an image of tolerance and modernity in the Muslim north African kingdom.This year's festival featured Kylie Minogue, Ennio Morricone, Khaled, Alicia Keys and Algerian diva Warda al Jazairia, and drew tens of thousands of spectators.Mawazine, which is backed by King Mohammed, aims to liven up the sleepy capital Rabat and ward off the growing cultural influence of powerful opposition Islamists.
Moroccan Islamist politicians have denounced pop concerts as encouraging immoral behavior.
They argue it would be better to spend the money to create jobs
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