At least 13 people have been killed and 34 others injured after a truck collided with a tour bus on a highway west of the Egyptian capital, Cairo, prompting an investigation into the cause of the crash.
The accident occurred on Tuesday along the Cairo-Asyut Western Desert Road, according to Egypt’s state-owned Al-Ahram newspaper.
The injured victims were taken to a hospital in Giza for treatment, while authorities commenced an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the collision.
An AFP correspondent at the scene reported that emergency crews were clearing the highway, where the impact of the crash left the bus severely damaged.
The front section of the bus was ripped apart, leaving twisted metal and debris scattered across the road. Passenger seats were strewn along the roadside, while fragments of the bus were visible on the rear of the truck.
The crash adds to concerns over road safety in Egypt, where fatal traffic accidents remain a recurring problem.
Road accidents in the country are frequently attributed to reckless driving, poor vehicle maintenance and inconsistent enforcement of traffic regulations.
According to Egypt’s state statistics agency, nearly 6,000 people died in road accidents across the country last year.
The latest incident follows another deadly bus crash in the Sinai Peninsula last month, which claimed 22 lives, including 10 Jordanian tourists.
In August, at least 18 people, many of them children, were killed in northern Egypt when two pickup trucks transporting agricultural day labourers collided.
Authorities are expected to establish the circumstances of Tuesday’s collision as investigations continue.
