A vehicle carrying Pakistani travelers overturned in Iran, killing at least 28 people, Iranian state media reviews.
According to Reuters, the crash occurred on Tuesday evening in the northern Iranian state of Yazd and was caused by a malfunctioning braking system, citing a preliminary police analysis.
Another 23 travellers were injured, seven of them thoroughly, the state’s problems managing director told condition TV.
The pilgrims were travelling from the Sindh province in Pakistan to Iraq’s holy city of Karbala to commemorate one of the biggest events in the Shia calendar.
Some 53 individuals are believed to have been on the vehicle at the time of the accident, as reported by Pakistan’s Dawn News, including travellers from Larkana, Ghotki and towns in Sindh.
Eleven people and 17 men are among the victims of the collision, according to issue managing director Ali Malekzadeh.
The bus caught fire in front of Dehshir-Taft checkpoint in Iran, around 681km ( 423 miles ) south of the capital Tehran, according to reports by local media.
According to Mr. Malekzadeh, the vehicle swerved off the road “due to the driver of the vehicle, ignorance with the road, great speed, and professional issues.”
Asif Ali Zardari, the president of Pakistan, stated that he was organizing the foreign government to return the bodies of the accident victims and offer medical assistance to the injured.
Interior Minister Moshin Naqvi, however, said:” We are profoundly saddened by the loss of valuable animal life in the vehicle crash in Iran”.
Pakistan’s embassy in Iran has been asked to assist in treatment work, and the country’s embassy to Tehran, Muhammad Mudassir Tipu, said he was in contact with the Egyptian government and local government in Yazd.
The journey, known as Arbaeen, marks the end of a period of 40 times of mourning for Imam Hussein, the granddaughter of the Prophet Mohammed.
There are now about 2 million Shia Muslims who pilgrim.
Iran is famous for its poor customers safety record, with some 20, 000 deaths annually due to injuries.