Several carriages overturn or derailed in the latest rail mishap in Egypt
At least seven people were killed and 114 injured on Sunday when two trains collided south of Cairo, with carriages overturned or derailed, authorities in Egypt say.
They said the collision happened when a train travelling from Giza to the oasis province of Fayum southwest of the Egyptian capital rear-ended another one travelling ahead from Cairo to the southern city of Aswan.
The collision happened in Giza, parts of which are in the greater Cairo region, when the Aswan-bound train made an unscheduled stop, according to the authorities.
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A government statement said prosecutors were at the site of the crash and in hospitals where the wounded have been taken. The prosecutors intend to interview passengers to determine the cause of the crash, the latest in a series of rail accidents that have killed scores and wounded hundreds since 2020.
The statement said the dead included the driver of the Fayum-bound train.
In a Facebook post, Egypt's President Abdel Fattah El Sisi said he was closely monitoring the aftermath of the accident, ordering authorities to provide adequate medical care for the wounded and swiftly investigate the incident.
He offered his condolences to the families of those killed and warned that anyone found responsible for negligence would be held accountable.
The railway authority said emergency teams and cranes had been sent to clear the wreckage, with efforts under way to restore normal train traffic in both directions on the Cairo-Aswan line.
Train accidents are not uncommon in Egypt, which has spent billions of dollars upgrading its rail network in recent years. The main causes are human error at level crossings and signal malfunctions.
Egypt has been working for years to develop its transport network, modernise trains and develop railway lines in a programme worth billions of dollars.
The Transport Ministry is reportedly the single largest borrower in the government, securing billions of dollars over the past decade in foreign debt to upgrade the railways, build new roads and cutting edge modes of transport like a fast electrical train and a monorail.