In the case of the collision between a train and a bus in Assiut last year, the bloc worker, Hussein Abdel Rahman, and the man responsible for managing the crossing, Sayed Abdou, were sentenced to 10 years in prison and a fine of LE100,000 by the Manfalut court.
On 17 November last year, a train crashed into an Azhar-owned school bus crossing the tracks near Manfalut in Assiut Governorate, killing 52 children and injuring 16 others.
The worker manning the crossing, Sayed Abdou, pleaded not guilty, claiming that before the accident he had filed 10 complaints of breakdowns and faulty alarm devices to the Egyptian National Railway Authority, without receiving any reply.
The Egyptian railway system has been dogged by such incidents. Egypt's worst train disaster was in 2002 when a fire ripped through seven carriages in an overcrowded passenger train, killing at least 360 people.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
