Egypt Fires Head of the Railway Authority In Wake of Cairo-Aswan Train Accident
By Nada Hamouda
On Sunday, Egypt’s Transport Minister, Hesham Arafat, fired the Head of the Egyptian Railway Authority, Sayed Salem, only hours after the Cairo-Aswan train accident. As early in the day, ten carriages of the train were derailed in front of Kom Ombo village in northern Aswan governorate.
According to the Ministry of Heath, the incident left six people with minor injuries. However, the Transport Minister appointed Ashraf Raslan as the new Head of the Railway Authority.
Egypt’s railway system has been having a poor safety record as the last major train incident took place in July, leaving 55 people injured following a Cairo-Qena train derailment. Last year, President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi said that Egypt’s railway system needs about EGP 180 billion for upgrading and development.
