28 Pilgrims Killed, 23 Others Sustain Injury As Bus Crashes In Iran
It was learnt that deceased consisting of 11 women and 17 men were involved in a bus crash in Central Iran, on Tuesday.
No fewer than 28 Pakistani pilgrims travelling to Iraq for a Shiite Muslim ritual have been reportedly killed, while 23 others sustained various degree of injury
It was learnt that deceased consisting of 11 women and 17 men were involved in a bus crash in Central Iran, on Tuesday.
“A bus carrying 51 Pakistani pilgrims overturned and caught fire in front of Dehshir-Taft checkpoint in the central province of Yazd on Tuesday night,” the state television reported.
“28 people have been killed and 23 injured so far with the possibility of the death toll increasing,” it added.
According to AFP, Yazd province crisis management chief Ali Malek-zadeh told the broadcaster that some of the injured were in critical condition.
“Of the 23 injured, six have already been discharged from hospital, while the condition of seven others is critical,” Malek-zadeh said.
“The dead consisted of 11 women and 17 men,” he added.
The Pakistani pilgrims were headed through Iran to Iraq to attend the Arbaeen commemoration, one of the biggest events of the Shiite calendar which marks the 40th day of mourning for Imam Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Mohammed.
Authorities offered no immediate cause for the crash. However, Iran has one of the world’s worst traffic safety records with some 17,000 deaths annually. The grave toll is blamed on wide disregard for traffic laws, unsafe vehicles and inadequate emergency services in its vast rural areas.
