9 Omanis killed in bus accident in Saudi Arabia

Muscat: Nine Omanis were killed when their bus collided with a truck on a highway in Saudi Arabia on Thursday morning, Royal Oman Police said.

Another fifteen sustained severe injuries and lay in the Intensive Unit Care (IUC) in Riyadh hospitals.

Thirty-one others sustained medium to light injuries.

The accident occurred in Kharees area between Riyadh and Al Ahsa. The 55 Omanis had performed Umrah in Makkah and were on their way home overland when they had the fatal accident between the Saudi capital Riyadh and Al Ahsa, 330 kilometres to the east.

Saudi news site Akhbar 24 however put the death toll at 11 and injuries at 34.

The injured were taken to hospital for medical treatment, and Saudi authorities declared a state of emergency in a number of hospitals in Riyadh and Al Ahsa.

- with inputs from Habib Toumi, Bahrain Bureau Chief