12 dead in Iran bus accident: state media

The accident late on Saturday between Abdanan and Dehloran, near the Iraqi border, was under investigation, the IRNA news agency said.

"After a bus carrying employees of a gas refinery overturned, 12 people unfortunately lost their lives and 16 were injured," IRNA said, citing a local official.

Authorities have warned the death toll could rise due to the severity of some of the injuries, the report said.

Iran has a poor road safety record. Traffic accidents claimed nearly 20,000 lives in the 12 months to March, the official Iranian Legal Medicine Organization said in June.