10 Palestinian school children die in collision

At least 10 Palestinian children were killed and some 60 injured when their school bus collided with a petrol-loaded truck on the Jaba'a junction. The bodies of the children, aged four to five years, were burnt when the bus burst into flames after the horrific crash, Ambulances from Ramallah hospitals and Red Crescent brought the bodies and some injured to the Palestine Medical Complex here. Some children were referred to Hadasa Ain Karem Hospital, Al Maqased Hospital and Al Salam Hospital. Victims from occupied East Jerusalem Medical sources at the complex said that most victims were from occupied East Jerusalem, mainly the Anata area. The illfated school bus and another bus loaded with more than 120 children from Noor Al Huda Kindergarten in Kafr Aqab of Ramallah were on their way to a field trip to the Ramallah play zone. Buses overloaded The victims' families went hysterical after they saw the bodies at the complex and complained that the buses were overloaded, the sources added. The Palestine Medical Complex urged the Palestinian residents to donate urgently-needed blood at the complex. Preliminary investigations revealed that the truck loaded with petrol had an Israel licensed number plate driven by a Palestinian of 1948 areas. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas announced a three-day mourning period for the dead children. Abbas stressed that the injured will be sent abroad, if needed, for treatment.