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Four Britons killed in Saudi Arabia coach crash

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Four Britons have died after their coach collided with a petrol tanker in Saudi Arabia.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office confirmed Britons were among a number of victims in the crash, which happened in a town roughly 30m (48km) north of the holy site of Mecca.

A spokesman said: "We are supporting the British families of those who have died and those injured following a serious road traffic accident near the town of Al Khalas, Saudi Arabia."

The coach was travelling between Mecca and Medina on Saturday when it was hit by the tanker, which then caught fire and set the coach alight.

One of the victims was a woman in her 60s from Blackburn and three others were from Preston: an elderly man, an elderly woman and her son.

Their families are planning to fly to Saudi Arabia in the next few hours.

The four dead were among 18 people on the coach, with other passengers reported to have been from Accrington, Preston, Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Northampton and Blackburn.

A number of them were injured in the crash, many suffering from fractures.

The driver of the tanker is also said to have died.

Gulfaraz Zaman, director of Blackburn-based Hashim Travel company, said: "The coach driver said they were travelling in the opposite direction to the petrol tanker when a car overtook the tanker and he had to move in to the side of the road a little to let it through but then the petrol tanker hit the coach which caught fire."

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The travel company specialises in arranging Hajj and Umrah pilgrimages, which it says it has done for 15 years.

Muslims are obliged to undertake the annual Hajj pilgrimage, which is later this year, but the Umrah pilgrimage is optional and on a smaller scale.

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