A head-on collision between a bus
and lorry in Morocco has killed at least 31 people, many of them young
athletes, officials say.
Many of the victims were killed by a fire which broke out following the crash, local media said.
The accident is said to have happened on the road between the capital, Rabat, and Laayoune, which is in the Western Sahara.
It took place early on Friday morning in the rural district of Chbika, near Tan-Tan, local media said.
"A majority of the victims are children aged eight to 14," an official from the regional sports and youth ministry told the AFP news agency.
Many of those on board were school students participating in a national sports competition, the Le360.ma local news site reported.
The site said the lorry involved was a petrol tanker, and the collision was followed by a "terrible explosion".
Road accidents have been on the rise in Morocco as car ownership has nearly doubled over the last 15 years, according to Reuters news agency.
An average of 10 people are estimated to die every day in road accidents.
Source: bbc news
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