Page 10 - ARUBA TODAY

A10 WORLD NEWS
Thursday 28 February 2019
Egypt says fight between conductors led to crash killing 25

By MAGGIE MICHAEL accident triggered an on-
Associated Press line debate among many
CAIRO (AP) — A fight be- Egyptians, with many blam-
tween two train conductors ing the government for not
unleashed a speeding, un- improving railway services
manned locomotive that in Egypt, even after a series
slammed into a barrier and of deadly accidents. Sev-
exploded in the Egyptian eral noted previous state-
capital's main train station ments by President Ab-
Wednesday, killing at least del-Fattah el-Sissi arguing
25 people, authorities said. about spending billions of
Railway officials said the pounds on improving trains.
single railcar collided head- Video from surveillance
on with the buffer stop, cameras showed flames
causing a huge explosion ravaging the station's interi-
and fire. At least 47 people or. One video that surfaced
were also injured, many of on social media showed
them critically, and officials men and women carrying
said the death toll could bags and personal belong-
rise. ings and walking on the rail
The deadly blaze blast- platforms as the train car
ed through people on crashes and explodes.
the platform in the busy People look at a damaged train inside Ramsis train station in Cairo, Egypt, Wednesday, Feb. 27, Another showed men
Ramses Station in down- 2019. and women running and
town Cairo. A surveillance Associated Press searching for exits after the
video showed the mo- explosion. A man is seen
ment of impact when the his car to fight with another said in a statement. gation was continuing. running back and forth, his
car barreled past men and conductor whose railcar Sadek put the death toll at The deadly accident shirt on fire, until another
women walking by and en- was blocking his. 20 while health officials said prompted Transportation man rushes to pour water
gulfed them in flames and But the conductor left with- at least 25 people were Minister Hisham Arafat to on him.
smoke. Charred bodies lay out putting on the brakes killed and dozens more resign his post, according Mohammed Said, head
on the platform, and a man and the other car began were injured in the crash to a statement released by of the Cairo Railroad hos-
in flames ran down a stair- moving backward, free- and ensuing fire. Some of the Cabinet office. pital, said at least 25 were
case in panic, according ing the locomotive, which the bodies were burnt be- The Ramses district is among killed but that the death
to other photos and videos then gathered speed and yond recognition and DNA the busiest and most toll could rise. Many of the
posted on social media. hit the concrete-and-metal tests were carried out to crowded areas of Cairo. wounded were in critical
Egypt's Prosecutor General barrier, exploding. determine identities. The state railway agency condition, mostly suffering
Nabil Sadek said investiga- "The driver left the railcar The driver of the railcar has briefly halted all train traf- severe burns, said Egyp-
tors determined the loco- without taking any mea- been under interrogation fic and ordered the evacu- tian Health Minister Hala
motive's conductor had left sures to brake it," Sadek and Sadek said the investi- ation of the station. The Zayed.q

Israeli PM vows to bar Iran from securing presence in Syria

responding to an Israeli air tion against the efforts of prevented risks and con-
strike. The incident left 15 Iran, which calls for our de- flicts between our militaries,
Russian crew dead and struction, and against its at- and that has contributed to
threatened to derail close tempts to entrench militarily regional security and stabil-
security ties between Rus- in Syria." ity," the Israeli leader said.
sia and Israel. Moscow has played a deli- Netanyahu congratulated
Russian President Vladimir cate diplomatic game of Putin on the military holiday
Putin said at the start of maintaining friendly ties Russia marked last week-
Wednesday's talks that "it's with both Israel and Iran. end and invited him to visit
very important to discuss Last summer, Moscow Israel to attend the open-
the situation in the region struck a deal with Tehran ing of a monument to the
and security issues." to keep its fighters away Nazi siege of Leningrad
He added that the high- from the Golan Heights to during World War II. "We will
level consultations are es- accommodate Israeli con- never forget the role of Rus-
sential in view of the evolv- cerns about the Iranian sia and the Red Army in the
ing situation. presence in Syria. victory over the Nazis," he
Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, gestures while speaking
to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during their meet- Netanyahu began the talks Netanyahu noted that he said. Putin, a native of the
ing in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2019. by reaffirming Israel's strong and Putin have had 11 city, accepted the offer.
Associated Press determination to block at- meetings since September Netanyahu praised "excel-
tempts by Iran to establish 2015 and hailed "the di- lent bilateral relations," not-
By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV ited Moscow for talks focus- a foothold in Syria. rect, open and true way in ing "more than one million
Associated Press ing on regional security. "The greatest threat to sta- which we maintain the re- Russian speakers who have
MOSCOW (AP) — Israel's For Benjamin Netanyahu, bility and security in the re- lationship between Russia made a great contribution
prime minister vowed it's the first trip to Moscow gion comes from Iran and and Israel." to Israel, have turned into a
Wednesday to prevent since September's down- its satellites," he said. "We "The direct connection be- part of us, and have made
Iran from securing a lasting ing of a Russian warplane are determined to contin- tween us has been an es- Russian culture a part of Is-
presence in Syria as he vis- by Syrian forces that were ue with our aggressive ac- sential element that has raeli culture."q