Two buses have collided in Syria, killing at least 35 people and injuring 30 others.

The crash happened on Saturday on the Deir Az Zor–Damascus road, a crucial highway stretching more than 400km (249 miles) that connects eastern Syria to the capital.

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The accident occurred between al-Sukhnah and Palmyra.

The Ministry of Interior said one of the buses was carrying members of the Internal Security Forces, while the other was transporting civilians.

The ministry added that ambulances had been dispatched to the scene.

According to the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), several helicopters were also sent to the crash site to medically evacuate the injured to Homs Military Hospital.

The highway is known to have poor safety standards, reflecting the dire state of Syria’s civilian infrastructure following a civil war that lasted nearly 14 years.

In October, Minister of Disaster Management and Emergency Response Raed al-Saleh said more than 2,000 road traffic accidents had occurred between January and the end of September, adding that such accidents were “among the leading causes of death in Syria”.