ANKARA, April 22 (Xinhua) -- Seven people were killed and 12 others injured on Tuesday in a minibus-truck collision in east Trkiye's Van province, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said.
The traffic accident occurred at around 4:30 p.m. local time (1330 GMT) on the highway linking Van and Trkiye's eastern Hakkari province, Yerlikaya said on his social media account.
The minibus collided with the box truck coming from the opposite direction, near the Guzeldere tunnel on the Van-Hakkari highway, semi-official Anadolu Agency reported.
All the injured passengers were transferred to nearby hospitals, where the death toll could rise, as four of the injured are in critical condition, said the report, citing local officials.
Emergency teams, including police, gendarmerie, medical personnel, and firefighters, were dispatched to the scene.
Traffic accidents claimed 2,713 lives across Trkiye in 2024, according to the General Directorate of Security. The highest number of accidents occurred in Istanbul, Ankara, and Izmir, with Istanbul alone recording 97,354 incidents.
