CAIRO: A bus carrying Egyptian workers plunged into a canal Thursday, killing 21 people and injuring 22 others, police said. The accident happened near the Mediterranean port city of Damietta, 160 km (100 miles) northeast of Cairo, a police official said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. The victims, who were employed by a weaving company, were heading to work when the accident took place. Elsewhere, at least seven Egyptian riot policemen died on Thursday when their van fell off a bridge in Cairo, security sources said. At least 20 others were injured in the accident, when the van veered off the bridge in the working class Cairo area of Abbasiya. Security sources had earlier put the death toll at 10. The van was taking the police to a court in central Cairo where thousands of police were deployed to stop protests in support of judges who are facing a disciplinary committee for criticizing election abuses. Road accidents are common in Egypt because of bad roads and poor enforcement of traffic laws. Police estimate that traffic accidents kill about 6,000 people each year. According to experts, 35,000 people are injured each year in Egypt in road accidents, which are estimated to cause annual losses of up to $350 million. Agencies
