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Two Trains Collide in Tunisia, 95 People Injured

Police inspect the damage to one of the locomotives in a train collision in the Jbel Jelloud area in the south of Tunisia's capital Tunis on March 21, 2022. (AFP)
Police inspect the damage to one of the locomotives in a train collision in the Jbel Jelloud area in the south of Tunisia's capital Tunis on March 21, 2022. (AFP)
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Two Trains Collide in Tunisia, 95 People Injured

Police inspect the damage to one of the locomotives in a train collision in the Jbel Jelloud area in the south of Tunisia's capital Tunis on March 21, 2022. (AFP)
Police inspect the damage to one of the locomotives in a train collision in the Jbel Jelloud area in the south of Tunisia's capital Tunis on March 21, 2022. (AFP)

A head-on collision between two passenger trains injured 95 people Monday in the south of the Tunisian capital, emergency services said.

"The injured were taken to hospitals and there were no deaths," civil defense spokesman Moez Triaa told AFP, adding that only one of the trains was carrying passengers.

Most of the injured suffered bruises or fractures, none of them life-threatening, he said.

Many passengers were in shock, he added, saying around 15 ambulances had been dispatched to treat the wounded or take them to hospital.

The collision happened at 9:30 am local time (0830 GMT) in the Jbel Jelloud area, on the approach to a terminus in central Tunis.

An AFP reporter at the site saw the front of one of the trains had been caved in.

The SNCFT national train company said 84 people had been wounded and that "77 were able to leave hospital while seven others are under observation".

Transport Minister Rabi Majidi visited the site of the accident but did not speak to journalists.

The cause of the accident was not immediately clear but the SNCFT said an inquiry had been opened.

Hours after the accident, the civil protection service said five people had been wounded when another train carrying 220 people was derailed on the way towards the Kef region west of Tunis.

Tunisia's ageing railway system has seen several deadly crashes in recent years.

Between 2017 and 2021, the country saw 173 train accidents which killed 229 people and injured 345, said Achraf Yehyaoui, spokesman for a governmental agency for preventing transport accidents.

At least five people were killed and more than 50 injured in late 2016 when a train slammed into a public bus near the site of Monday's crash.

An official said signals and safety gates had been out of service at the time of the crash.

The 2016 accident prompted the sacking of SNCFT chief Sabiha Derbal.

The previous year, the North African country experienced one of its worst railway disasters, with 18 people killed when a train hit a lorry and derailed at a level crossing south of the capital because of a signals failure.

The country of just under 12 million people also has a poor road safety record, with some 980 deaths and more than 6,500 injuries last year according to the interior ministry.

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Houthis in Yemen Strip their Head of Govt of his Powers

The Houthis prevented Ahmed al-Rahwi from naming the head of his office. (Houthi media)
The Houthis prevented Ahmed al-Rahwi from naming the head of his office. (Houthi media)
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Houthis in Yemen Strip their Head of Govt of his Powers

The Houthis prevented Ahmed al-Rahwi from naming the head of his office. (Houthi media)
The Houthis prevented Ahmed al-Rahwi from naming the head of his office. (Houthi media)

The Iran-backed Houthi militias have prevented their so-called prime minister, Ahmed al-Rahwi, from naming the head of his office.

The Houthis have instead forced him to appoint a person of their choosing against his wishes, revealed informed sources in the Houthi-held capital Sanaa.

The Houthis are attempting to strip al-Rahwi, who was named as head of the militias’ new government, of his powers, making his appointment simply a cover for imposing their agenda and favoring Houthis who are descended of the line of their leader Abdulmalik al-Houthi.

The sources revealed that al-Rahwi had headed to the government headquarters with Rabih al-Mehdi, the director of the office of his predecessor. Mehdi hails from the Abyan province that is held by the legitimate government.

Al-Rahwi was seeking to keep al-Mehdi in his post. However, a leading Houthi member, Mohammed Qassem al-Kabisi, who used to occupy the position of government secretary, barred him from making the appointment.

Kabisi even prevented al-Mehdi from entering his office, resulting in an argument with al-Rahwi.

Kabisi informed al-Rahwi that he had no authority in naming the head of his office, saying that he does instead.

Al-Rahwi turned to the Houthis’ so-called ruling high political council to resolve the dispute and was informed that he should accept Kabisi as head of his office despite his objection.

A decree was issued days later naming Kabisi to the post.

He will effectively hold absolute power in government, while al-Rahwi will simply play a figurative role and only be needed to approve decisions and procedures taken by the Houthi leadership, joining other ministers who have no real duties.

The Houthis have formed a new government that will follow in the footsteps of its predecessor in keeping actual power to the militias themselves.

The new lineup includes a pro-Houthi figure, with no diplomatic background or experience, who was named foreign minister, replacing leading General People's Congress member Hisham Sharaf.

The appointment only fueled claims that the Houthis were seeking to eliminate their partners from rule. Al-Rahwi himself had no say in the lineup.

The Houthis announced the formation of their government on August 12. It met on August 17 to discuss its program, referred it to parliament the same day and by the next morning, an announcement was made that it was approved with no amendments or objections.

The incident with al-Rahwi has fueled speculation that the coming period will witness more struggles for power among the Houthis and their partners, whom they are trying to keep out of rule.

Observers noted that Kabisi is the son of a top Houthi leader. Qassem al-Kabisi is one of the founders of the group and is close to their leader Abdulmalik al-Houthi.

The senior Houthi officials believe they have the right to represent the Houthis in rule since they are its founders and oldest members.