Saudi bus accident: Hyderabad Police Commissioner says 45 killed
Hyderabad (PTI): At least 45 people, most of them from Hyderabad, were killed in a bus accident in Saudi Arabia, the city police chief said on Monday, citing preliminary information.
Addressing reporters here, Hyderabad police commissioner VC Sajjanar said a total of 54 people travelled to Jeddah from here on November 9. They were scheduled to return on November 23.
Of the 54, four people travelled separately by car to Madina on Sunday, while another four stayed back in Mecca.
According to the official, 46 people were travelling in the ill-fated bus, which collided with an oil tanker about 25 km from Madina.
Only one person survived the accident and is currently undergoing treatment at a hospital.
"We are getting information that 45 people died. They were supposed to return to Hyderabad on 23rd (of November)," he added.
AIMIM MLA Majid Hussain said, "We have received information that over 40 people died in the accident, and we are coordinating with the families."
The Consulate General of India in Jeddah, in a statement, said it and the Embassy in Riyadh are extending full support.
“Officials of the Embassy and the consulate are also in touch with the concerned officials of the state of Telangana to coordinate with the concerned families,” it said.
AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi expressed anguish over the report of deaths of several Hyderabad residents in the accident.
He urged External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to help bring back the bodies of those who died and provide treatment to those injured, the AIMIM said in a post on X.
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England sticking with Key, McCullum and Stokes despite Ashes humbling
London (AP): England is not sacking anybody following the 4-1 Ashes loss in Australia.
A review of the tour by the England and Wales Cricket Board, announced within hours of the final match in January, was concluded on Monday. Firing people would “be the easy thing to do,” ECB chief executive Richard Gould said but he insisted, "This is not the time to throw everything out."
Managing director Rob Key, coach Brendon McCullum and captain Ben Stokes kept their jobs after the best England side to go to Australia in 14 years lost the Ashes in 11 days with two games to spare.
“Moving people on can sometimes be the easy thing to do. That's not the route that we're going to take,” Gould said. “I've seen the driving ambition and determination that we're lucky enough to have within our leadership group to take the lessons from the Ashes and move forward.”
Gould previously was the chief executive of Bristol City soccer club and said the ECB would not follow the same route as soccer's hire-and-fire culture.
“Cricket is a very unique sport in that it takes a team of leadership ... it's not like football where there's a single point of failure or success with a manager," he said. He added the ECB would not “select or deselect management based on a popularity campaign.”
The main criticisms of England's tour were poor preparation, player misbehavior, and selection mistakes.
At a press conference at Lord's, Gould and Key said McCullum and Stokes have not had a “bust up,” they did not want McCullum to “completely change” but “to evolve,” the behavior of some players was “unprofessional,” there will be more consequences for underperforming, and a commitment to “better long-term planning” ahead of major test series.
Some changes were already implemented for the Twenty20 World Cup, where England reached the semifinals. Gould implied that performance saved McCullum.
Key acknowledged that England supporters would be disappointed to see the management team go unpunished.
“I know people want punishment and that people then should be sacked for that,” Key said. “That doesn't mean we don't feel like we've gone through some serious pain: Brendon, myself, Ben. It's been as tough a time as I think I've had.”
