At least six people have died during a crowd crush at a military recruitment event in a stadium in Ghana.
Wednesday’s “tragic” crush appeared to have been caused by “an unexpected surge of applicants who breached security protocols and rushed into the gates,” said a statement from Ghana’s armed forces.
Twenty-two others were injured, including five who remain in critical condition.
Thousands had turned up to El-Wak stadium, in the capital, Accra, with the hope of joining the military.
Ghana has a youth unemployment rate of about 32%, the latest government statistics show, and such recruitment events normally draw large crowds and often result in chaotic scenes.
The deadline to apply for this event was extended by a week to accommodate more applicants, as some had experienced difficulties in the process.
Army spokesperson Capt Veronica Adzo Arhin said the crush occurred ahead of the event’s scheduled start of 06:20 GMT.
Ghana’s President John Mahama has visited the injured in hospital.
Despite the deaths, the recruitment exercise did start, but it was suspended in the afternoon “to allow for additional measures to ensure a seamless exercise”, Capt Arhin said.
She added that there would be an investigation into the crush.
