13 die in China highway collision

At least 13 people have died after a minibus crashed into a truck on a highway in central China.

The accident occurred in the early hours of Thursday in Henan Province near the city of Nanyang, which has a population of about nine million people.

According to traffic police, the minibus collided with the truck on the G40 expressway, a major highway linking Shanghai with Shaanxi Province in northern China.

Authorities said 16 people were travelling in the minibus, which was licensed to carry only nine passengers.

Three other passengers sustained injuries in the crash.

Police said investigations into the cause of the accident are ongoing, while China’s Ministry of Public Security has dispatched a working group to probe the incident.