17 soldiers killed, 35 injured in car accident in northern Egypt

CAIRO, July 21 (Xinhua) -- As many as 17 soldiers were killed and 35 others injured on Sunday in a bus accident in Egypt's Beheira governorate, north of the capital Cairo, state-run al- Ahram online reported.

The accident took place when the bus collided with a truck on the Wadi el- Natroun-Alamein highway.

The dead people, who raged from 28-37 years old, were transferred to Wadi el-Natroun morgue, while 16 of the injured were airlifted by helicopter to the armed forces hospital in Cairo, Ahram quoted Mohamed Meanisy, the undersecretary of health ministry in the governorate as saying.

Among the injured, at least three people were in serious condition.

Army spokesman Ahmed Mohamed Ali expressed condolences to the families of the victims, including soldiers and civilians, wishing a quick recovery to the injured.

According to the official figures, about 10,000 people in Egypt are killed in road accidents every year. The lack of highway security monitoring systems, poor road maintenance and negligence of traffic rules are the main reasons behind the high rate of road accidents in Egypt.

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