Egypt’s
health ministry says search is continuing after discovery of four more bodies
brings death toll of collision earlier this week to 35
ASSOCIATED PRESS: Saturday 25 July 2015 22.44 BST Last
modified on Sunday 26 July 2015 00.26 BST
Search parties have retrieved four more bodies from the Nile
river after a boat collision earlier this week, bringing the death toll to 35, Egypt’s health
ministry has said.
Ministry spokesman Hossam Abdel-Ghaffar said on Saturday
that search efforts are continuing.
Egypt’s
president, Abdel Fattah al-Sissi, said he ordered a sum of 60,000 Egyptian
pounds (£4,940) to be paid to each family of the deceased and called for
measures to be taken to prevent future collisions. Prime minister Ibrahim
Mahlab has formed a committee to review legislation related to Nile river management.
Egypt
also replaced the head of the River Transport Authority in response to the
collision, state media reported on Saturday.
The collision late on Wednesday night happened when a
passenger boat travelling down the Nile near Cairo collided with a cargo boat, causing the
passenger boat to capsize. The cargo boat’s captain and his assistant have been
detained on suspicion of manslaughter.
Nile traffic has been heavy, especially near Cairo, as Egyptians
celebrated the Eid al-Fitr holiday following the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
Slogan
"Down with military rule"
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