17 killed in road accident in Egypt

Cairo, Aug 3 At least 17 people were killed and four others injured in an accident involving a micro bus and a truck on the desert road of Sohag Province in southern Egypt.

The accident occurred late Tuesday, Xinhua news agency reported.

"Fifteen ambulances rushed to the scene of the accident to take the injured to the Sohag Public Hospital," Tarek al-Fiqy, governor of Sohag, told Xinhua.

"Initial investigations blamed the high speed of the microbus driver for the accident when he attempted to avoid collision with the coming truck from the opposite side," he added.

Road accidents are common in Egypt because of poorly maintained road infrastructure and loosely enforced traffic regulations.

Over the past few years, Egypt has been upgrading its road network, building new roads and bridges, and repairing old ones to reduce traffic accidents