At least 70 people were injured in Egypt on Thursday when a passenger train derailed and two of its cars overturned, the health ministry said.

The accident occurred in Bani Sueif province south of Cairo as the train was headed to the Egyptian capital from the temple city of Luxor.

“Fifty-eight people were treated for their injuries and discharged, while the rest are under observation in hospital,” the ministry said in a statement.

Deadly train and vehicle accidents are common in Egypt, and some have sparked protests against alleged negligence in enforcing safety standards.

In March last year, children were among seven people killed when a train crashed into a school bus on an unauthorized level crossing east of Cairo.

But the deadliest disaster occurred in February 2002 when 370 people were killed in a fire which tore through a train south of the capital.

AFP