7 killed as Egypt train crashes into school bus

Cairo: A train crashed into a school bus east of the Egyptian capital on Friday, killing at least seven people including children, police and health officials said.

The collision occurred at an unauthorised railway crossing on the Cairo-Esmailiya desert road, police said, adding that the bus had failed to stop at the crossing and was hit by the moving train.

Health ministry spokesman Hussam Abdul Gaffar said that 26 people were also wounded in the accident, seven of them, including three children, in critical condition.

Abdul Gaffar did not specify how many of those killed were children.

Deadly train and vehicle accidents are common in Egypt, and some have sparked protests amid allegations of government negligence in enforcing traffic safeguards.

Road accidents alone account for nearly 12,000 deaths annually, according to World Health Organisation.