PALMYRA, Syria: A Syrian bus collision killed at least 35 people and injured 30 others on Saturday near Palmyra, the Syrian Health Ministry said.
The buses collided between Palmyra and Al-Sukhnah on the Damascus-Deir ez-Zor highway in central Homs province.
One bus carried civilians, while the other transported members of the Internal Security Forces, the Interior Ministry said.
The Syrian Ministry of Defence deployed helicopters to support the emergency operation. The aircraft transported victims from Palmyra airport to Homs Military Hospital, according to Reuters.
Ambulance crews and other emergency teams also reached the scene. Syrian Civil Defence dispatched personnel from Palmyra and requested reinforcements from Deir ez-Zor.
Najeeb Al-Naasan, director of ambulance and emergency services at the Health Ministry, confirmed the toll to the Syrian Arab News Agency. SANA published the figure at 3:20 pm on July 25 but did not disclose when the collision occurred.
Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani offered condolences to the victims’ families and wished the injured a quick recovery. Authorities had not announced the cause of the collision.
