Pakistan begins probe into cause of deadly train crash

Pakistani investigators on Monday were set to begin an investigation to determine the cause of a deadly train crash, officials said.

Several carriages of Hazara Express derailed in the southern province of Sindh on Sunday, killing 31 passengers and injuring nearly 100 others, Railways Minister Khawaja Saad Rafiq said.

The minister said sabotage could not be ruled out.

“Our inspectors will begin to examine the track and damaged carriages to conclude what was the cause,” Railways official Ali Mohamed Afridi said at the crash site.

Investigators would talk to the drivers and passengers before finalising the report in four to five days, he added.

Rescue operation to remove the rubble and restore the track for passenger and freight traffic was still continuing nearly 24 hours after the crash, local rescue official Khursheed Panwar said.

Pakistani Taliban, a group of Islamist militants behind several deadly attacks in recent months, denied their involvement in a statement overnight.

Deadly train accidents are common in Pakistan due to outdated tracks laid by the British ruler of the Indian sub-continents in 19th century, low quality locomotives and human errors.

Sub-nationalist rebels in the provinces of Balochistan and Sindh also target trains and rail trac