Turkish train crash kills seven

ISTANBUL, Turkey -- Seven people have been killed and eight injured after a train smashed into a minibus at a junction in southwest Turkey, the Associated Press has reported.

The accident happened soon after midnight near the south-western city of Isparta as a minibus carrying 15 passengers entered a railway crossing despite traffic signals indicating an oncoming train, said the agency.

Police said the train -- an express from Isparta to the Aegean port city of Izmir -- smashed into the minibus, killing seven of its passengers. The other travellers, some seriously injured, were taken to hospital in Isparta.

Isparta is 188 miles southwest of the Turkish capital Ankara.

There were no reports of injuries among the train's passengers.