UAE condoles Belgium over school bus-train collision victims

The UAE expressed its solidarity with the Kingdom of Belgium following the collision between a school bus and a train in the Flanders region, which left a number of people dead and injured.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs conveyed its sincere condolences to the families of the victims, the government of the Kingdom of Belgium and its friendly people for this tragic loss, wishing a speedy recovery to the injured.

Four people, including two teenagers, were killed ​in Belgium on Tuesday when a ‌train crashed into a ‌school bus on a level-crossing near the town of Buggenhout, RTL TV reported, ‌citing Transport Minister Jean-Luc Crucke.

The victims also included the bus driver and an adult accompanying the pupils, RTL quoted Crucke as saying.

Two other people were also severely injured, he added.

The accident occurred early on ​Tuesday at a level-crossing near Buggenhout station, ‌about 23 kilometres from Brussels.

Crucke said security cameras showed that the crossing’s security barriers had come down.

Interior Minister Bernard Quintin said on X that “it is with deep ​sadness ‌that I learned of the tragic ‌accident that occurred in Buggenhout.”

Belgium’s prime minister, Bart De Wever, wrote on X that he was “deeply moved by the horrific accident in Buggenhout. My thoughts go out to the affected families.”

“I was heartbroken to learn of the tragic accident between a train and a school bus in Buggenhout today. My deepest condolences go out to the victims’ families and their loved ones. Today, Europe grieves with Belgium,” said Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission on X.

A spokesperson for the rail network operator Infrabel told the Flemish public broadcaster VRT: “We do not know how the accident could have happened. That is for the police and the public prosecutor’s office to investigate.”

According to the local media reports, a spokesperson for the public prosecutor told reporters that the four victims were two children aged 15 and 12, their 27-year-old chaperone and the driver of the van, who was 49.

TV footage showed the crumpled white minivan overturned on its side at the crossing, with ambulances and a helicopter. Such was the force of the impact that the bus was catapulted into the driveway of a house.

The children were on their way to a special educational needs school in the town.

Belgium, where ‌a dense railway network criss-crosses towns and villages, has ‌a history of accidents at level-crossings.

Five people died in such accidents in 2025, railway infrastructure operator ​Infrabel says on its website, the lowest number recorded since 2020.

Agencies