At least 6 people were killed - today, Monday - as a result of their bus colliding with a truck on an international road between Nasiriyah and Basra in southern Iraq, as they were heading to watch a match in the semi-finals of the Gulf Cup football tournament, according to what the French News Agency quoted an official source.

The accident occurred this morning when a truck collided with a bus "carrying fans heading to Basra to attend the Qatar-Iraq match" in the semi-finals of the 25th Gulf Cup, which is scheduled to take place in the afternoon, killing 6 people, according to Abdul Hussein Al-Jabri, director of forensic medicine in the province. Dhi Qar, located in the south of the country, and its center is Nasiriyah.

He added, "5 wounded were also admitted to Nasiriyah General Hospital, two of them were in serious condition and were provided with a respirator," and "3 others suffered various fractures."

The Director of Forensic Medicine also said, "The cause of the accident is the heavy fog that the city of Nasiriyah and its external roads have been witnessing since Monday morning."

#Urgent


, a terrible traffic accident involving a bus carrying fans on the Nasiriyah-Basra highway, and the initial outcome resulted in the death of 8 people and the injury of 16 others.


#Gulf25 pic.twitter.com/yTx6Z26tFL

- The platform (@mnsah_kw) January 16, 2023

Today, the Iraqi national team faces its Qatari counterpart in the semi-finals of the Gulf Cup 25, while the Oman national team plays with its Bahraini counterpart, the defending champion, in the same round.

Iraq suffers from crumbling infrastructure due to conflicts that have been going on for decades, especially highways, bridges and other traffic facilities.

Potholes are spread on the roads, and it is completely dark during the night.

But officials also point out that the causes of accidents include excessive speed, use of mobile phones and consumption of alcohol and drugs.

And the year 2022 until November recorded about 7 thousand traffic accidents, as reported by the General Traffic Directorate to the official news agency.

And in 2021, more than 4,800 people died in traffic accidents in Iraq, or more than 13 deaths per day, as announced by the Ministry of Health in mid-July.

South of Nasiriyah, a horrific traffic accident ends the lives of dozens who were in a vehicle, a bus type facility, heading to Basra to attend the Arab Gulf Cup pic.twitter.com/O5lceAGY1L

- Zahir Saleh Al-Khursan (@ adda11982) January 16, 2023