Seven dead and more than 100 injured after trains collide in Egypt
Several carriages derailed after two trains travelling in the same direction crashed outside the city of Giza.
Key points
- Two trains travelling south from Giza and Cairo collided near Giza, killing at least seven people.
- More than 100 people were injured and the public prosecutor warned the death toll could rise.
- President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi ordered an investigation and said negligent parties would be held accountable.
At least seven people have died and more than 100 were injured after two trains collided near the Egyptian city of Giza, the country's railway authority said. The crash caused several carriages to derail and fall down an embankment.
The first train was travelling from Giza to Fayoum when it hit the rear of a stationary service heading from Cairo to Aswan. The driver of one of the trains was among those killed, the ministry confirmed.
Emergency response and investigation
The public prosecutor's office warned the death toll could rise. Hospitals in the area were put "on heightened alert" to handle a large influx of patients, and Health Minister Dr Khaled Abdel Ghaffar said people were being treated for broken bones and head injuries.
President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi said he had ordered state authorities to "investigate the circumstances of the accident, and hold accountable anyone found to have been negligent". The Egyptian Red Crescent said it was providing aid and psychological support to victims and their families at the scene.
investigate the circumstances of the accident, and hold accountable anyone found to have been negligent
— Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi
Reaction and earlier tragedies
There were calls on Sunday for the transport minister to resign over the disaster. Foreign leaders and dignitaries offered condolences, including Saudi Arabia's foreign ministry, which expressed "solidarity" with Egypt, and Turkey's ambassador to Egypt, who wrote on X of his "heartfelt condolences and sincere sympathy".
The collision happened between Kafr Ammar and Al-Raqqa stations in Al-Ayyat, close to the site of Egypt's deadliest train tragedy in February 2002, when a fire on a Cairo to Luxor passenger train killed more than 370 people officially. Two further crashes in the area in 2009 killed dozens more.
