9 Iranian Pilgrims Dead, Many Injured After Bus Crashes Into Truck In Iraq's Nassiriya: Report

A road accident in Iraq has led to the death of nine Iranian pilgrims and left dozens injured. Four of the injured are in critical condition.

At least nine Iranian pilgrims lost their lives and dozens got injured on Monday when the bus they were travelling in crashed against a truck in the southern Iraqi city of Nassiriya, reported Reuters citing medical sources. According to medical experts, the bus was crammed with pilgrims who were en route to the holy Shi’ite Muslim city of Karbala, as per Reuters. One of the medics said that 31 people were injured including women and children and five of them were in critical condition, the report stated.

Further details on the matter are awaited.

Earlier in September 2022, 11 Iranian Shia Muslim pilgrims along with a local driver died in central Iraq after the minibus that they were travelling in collided with a truck and burst into flames. The spokesman of health authorities Ahmed Al-Jibouri while talking to news agency AFP said that the vehicle carrying the pilgrims crashed into a parked truck in the Babil province south of Baghdad.

He told AFP, "Eleven Iranians died on impact, along with their Iraqi driver," and added that four other pilgrims were in critical condition. He further said that a fire had erupted and the driver of the truck was apprehended for questioning. 

Iran's deputy interior minister Majid Mirahmadi while talking to Iran's news agency 'Mehr' said, "Due to the seriousness of the accident and the fire, the bodies cannot be identified". He added that the Iranian victims "will be transferred to Iran for identification."

According to The New Arab, there are many roads in Iran that are full of potholes which are often unseeable in the dark. However, officials have said that speed and the usage of mobile phone while driving also contributes significantly to crashes.