BAGHDAD, June 8 (Bernama-Xinhua) -- At least 21 people were killed and 19 others injured, including two Iranian nationals, on Sunday in a bus-truck crash involving Shiite pilgrims in southern Iraq's Dhi Qar province, the Iraqi Health Ministry announced, reported Xinhua.
Ministry spokesperson Saif al-Badr said in an audio statement that a passenger bus carrying Shiite pilgrims collided with a fuel truck, causing a fire that left several bodies severely charred.
Al-Badr added that the victims were transferred to forensic authorities for identification, while the injured were taken to nearby healthcare facilities for medical treatment.
Meanwhile, Colonel Karim al-Mousawi from the Iraqi traffic police told Xinhua that the bus was returning from holy sites in central Iraq's Karbala and Najaf to southern Iraq's Basra province when it collided with the fuel truck on the highway connecting Dhi Qar and Basra due to excessive speeding.
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has directed relevant authorities to conduct a thorough investigation into the causes of the accident, read a statement issued by his media office.
--BERNAMA-XINHUA
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