16 Iraqi pilgrims killed in Iran road smash

TEHRAN: Sixteen Iraqis were killed and 20 more wounded Tuesday when their bus crashed as they were travelling in western Iran, ISNA news agency reported.

"The accident took place around 2.40 in the morning ... It seems that the driver fell asleep, causing the accident. Sixteen Iraqis were killed and 20 others wounded, some seriously," a police official in Iran's western province of Lorestan said.

Many Iraqis travel to Iran on pilgrimage, particularly to visit the holy cities of Qom and Mashhad.

Last week, 44 people were killed and 39 wounded in a collision between two buses that then caught fire on the highway connecting Qom and Tehran, the most serious road accident in the country in years.