Video footage on social media shows chaotic scenes after the incident in the Bab-al-Yemen area of the city.

    Reuters news agency reports that hundreds of people crowded into the school to receive donations, which amounted to about $9 (£7) per person.

    Houthi rebels have run the city since they drove out the government in 2015.

   Those responsible for the distribution have been detained, and an investigation is under way, the interior ministry said.

   Many people were also injured, with 13 in a critical situation, a health official in Sana said.

  The Associated Press news agency quotes two eyewitnesses 

     who said Houthi fighters had fired into the air in an attempt at crowd control, apparently striking an electrical wire, which resulted in an explosion.

    This caused panic that led to the crush, they added.

    The event happened during the final days of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which is marked by a period of fasting.

    Yemen has been devastated by the conflict that escalated in 2015, when the Houthis seized control of large parts of the west of the country.

    President Abdrabbuh Mans our Hadi fled abroad, and a Saudi-led alliance of Arab states intervened to restore his rule. However, years of military stalemate followed.

    The fighting has reportedly left more than 150,000 people dead and more than 23 million people - three-quarters of the population - in need of some form of aid.

   Last week, a major prisoner swap between warring sides in Yemen started, seen as part of stepped-up efforts to end the devastating eight-year conflict.

  A major prisoner swap between warring sides in Yemen is under way, seen as part of stepped-up efforts to end the devastating eight-year conflict there.

   Red Cross officials said 318 prisoners had been flown on four flights between the rebel-held capital, Sana, and government-held Aden.

   About 900 prisoners are expected to be exchanged over the next three days.

   The war between rebels and pro-government Saudi-led forces has left tens of thousands of Yemenis dead.

   It has also created what the UN has called one of the world's worst humanitarian crises, with some 80% of the population forced to rely on food aid to survive.

  The exchange-the largest since late 2020-is seen as a confidence-building measure, following talks earlier this week in Sana between a Saudi delegation and Houthi rebels aimed at reaching a new and potentially permanent ceasefire.

   The talks were facilitated by Oman, which shares a border with both Saudi Arabia and Yemen and has played a key role in attempts to broker an end to the fighting for years.

    There has been increased momentum towards ending the war since Saudi Arabia and the Houthis resumed direct on-off talks last year. Hopes were furthered when Saudi Arabia and its powerful rival Iran - the Houthis' main backer - agreed last month to restore relations after a bitter seven-year rift.

    Despite the failure to renew a UN-brokered six-month ceasefire in October, there has been a sharp decline in fighting, accompanied by some steps to ease tensions. They include the easing of restrictions on imports and prisoner exchanges, agreed in negotiations in Switzerland last month.

    There are believed to be thousands of prisoners held by both sides.

    "With this act of goodwill, hundreds of families torn apart by conflict are being reunited during the holy month of Ramadan, providing a glimmer of hope amidst great suffering," said Fabrizio Carbonic, regional director of the International Committee of the Red Cross ICRC.

    Yemen has been devastated by a conflict that escalated in 2015, when the Houthis seized control of large parts of the west of the country.

    President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi fled abroad and a Saudi-led alliance of Arab states intervened to restore his rule. However, years of military stalemate have followed.

   The fighting has reportedly left more than 150,000 people dead and more than 23 million people - three-quarters of the population - in need of some form of aid.