NEW DELHI: At least seven people have been killed and more than 100 others injured after two passenger trains collided in Egypt's Giza Governorate, south of the capital, Cairo on Sunday, officials said.

According to Egyptian authorities, the accident occurred in the Al-Ayyat district, approximately 76 kilometres south of Cairo, when a passenger train travelling from Giza to Fayoum crashed into the rear of another train operating on the Cairo-Aswan route. The collision caused several carriages to derail, leaving passengers trapped and triggering a large-scale emergency response.

Emergency services, including ambulances and rescue teams, were immediately deployed to the accident site. Injured passengers were transported to nearby hospitals in Giza and neighbouring provinces for medical treatment.

Egypt's Health Ministry confirmed the fatalities and injuries. Media reports said that the number had reached at least 125. More than 70 injured passengers were subsequently discharged from hospitals after receiving treatment.

The train's conductor was among those killed in the collision, according to media reports.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi expressed condolences to the families of those who lost their loved ones and directed government agencies to provide immediate medical assistance to the injured.

He also ordered a prompt investigation into the circumstances surrounding the accident, stressing that anyone found responsible for negligence would be held accountable.

The country's Public Prosecutor's Office has launched an investigation to establish the technical reasons behind the collision. Investigators have visited the accident site as authorities work to determine the sequence of events that led to the crash.

The latest accident has once again raised concerns about railway safety in Egypt, which operates one of the oldest and largest railway networks in Africa and the Middle East.

Despite significant government investments in railway modernisation and transport infrastructure, the country has experienced several deadly railway accidents over the years.

One of Egypt's worst railway disasters occurred in 2002, when a fire swept through an overcrowded passenger train travelling from Cairo towards southern Egypt, killing more than 300 people.

Authorities are continuing rescue, recovery and investigation operations following Sunday's collision. Efforts are also underway to clear the wreckage and restore normal railway services along the affected route.

The investigation is expected to shed further light on the circumstances that led to the collision and whether operational or technical failures contributed to the tragedy.