At least seven people have died and more than 100 others were injured after two trains collided near the Egyptian city of Giza, causing several carriages to derail and plunge down an embankment.
According to the country's railway authority, the crash occurred when a train travelling south from Giza to Fayoum, south of Cairo, struck the rear of another south-bound service running from Cairo to Aswan that was stationary on the tracks. The collision took place in the Al-Ayyat area between Kafr Ammar and Al-Raqqa stations.
The ministry confirmed that the driver of one of the trains was among those killed in the collision. Public prosecutors warned that the death toll could increase as rescue work continues. Local hospitals were placed on heightened alert to process the influx of casualties, with Health Minister Dr Khaled Abdel Ghaffar stating that medical teams are treating patients primarily for head injuries and broken bones.
Images captured at the scene showed severely damaged, overturned carriages, with the structure of at least one carriage appearing to have split in two. Uninjured passengers and local bystanders scrambled into the wrecked trains alongside emergency crews to rescue trapped victims. The Egyptian Red Crescent announced that its teams are on site providing immediate physical aid as well as psychological support to survivors and families of the victims.
Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi stated that he had instructed state agencies to "investigate the circumstances of the accident, and hold accountable anyone found to have been negligent". Following the incident, train service between Giza and the Upper Egypt region was completely suspended while heavy cranes were dispatched to clear the wreckage. The railway authority has not provided a timeline for when normal services will resume.
The tragedy occurred in Al-Ayyat, near the site of Egypt's deadliest rail disaster in February 2002, when a fire engulfed a passenger train bound for Luxor from Cairo, officially killing over 370 people, though unofficial estimates ranged higher. The same district experienced two additional train crashes in 2009 that claimed dozens of lives.
Condolences have poured in from foreign officials following the crash. Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement of "solidarity" with Egypt, wishing a rapid recovery for those injured. Turkey's ambassador to Egypt posted a message on X expressing "heartfelt condolences and sincere sympathy" to the victims, their families, and the Egyptian public.
