15 Palestinians, Jordanians die in Jordan bus crash

At least 42 pilgrims returning from Mecca injured after bus turns over, Jordanian news agency reports.

By JPOST.COM STAFF
Bus crash accident route 1_311 (photo credit: Mandy Hechtman)
Bus crash accident route 1_311
(photo credit: Mandy Hechtman)
Fifteen Palestinians and Jordanians were killed and 42 others were injured on Saturday when their bus flipped over on the Jordanian side of the Dead Sea road, 25 kilometers southwest of Amman, the Jordanian news agency Petra reported.
Five of the injured were in critical condition, and 25 of the injured were evacuated to Amman hospitals, according to Palestinian news agency Ma’an.
The bus, which was carrying Palestinians and Jordanians on their way back from a pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia, turned over after colliding with a van and a car, not far from the Allenby Bridge crossing. The bus driver was killed.
Six of the dead were from Jenin, while the rest were Jordanian citizens, Army Radio reported.
“We are working on arrangements to bring the bodies to Jenin,” the governor of Jenin, Talal Dweikat, told Ma’an.
Israel offered its assistance to Jordan: Magen David Adom offered to help with medical care for the Palestinians who were injured, while Transportation Minister Israel Katz instructed the Israel Airports Authority to help the families of the crash victims cross the border into Jordan, by extending the opening hours for the Allenby Bridge.