At least 25 people were killed in a train accident in Egypt on Saturday evening. Fifty others were injured. There may be more casualties in the wreckage.

The accident happened near the village of Guerzah, 40 kilometres south-west of the capital Cairo, when a passenger train collided at full speed into a stationary train. The stationary train had stopped after hitting a water buffalo.

Train accidents frequently occur in Egypt. Last year 44 people were killed in a train disaster in the north of the country. In 2002, 360 people died in a fire in an overcrowded train.

The Egyptian government is fiercely criticised for the lack of safety in trains and traffic.
 

Photo: Egyptian train accident - ANP