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Belgian trains crash head-on, 20 killed - report


    BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Two trains crashed head-on outside Brussels on Monday, killing at least 20 people, officials and Belgian broadcaster VRT said.

    The passenger trains collided near Halle, 15 km (9 miles) southwest of Brussels at around 8:30 a.m. (7:30 a.m. British time).

    VRT quoted the mayor of Halle as saying 20 people had been killed, but local officials and the train line operator Infrabel were unable to immediately confirm that figure.

    "There are indeed dead," an Infrabel spokesman said, but would not say how many.

    Television pictures showed the two trains crushed against each other, their fronts raised into the air.

    Train services, including the high-speed line between Brussels and Paris, have been suspended for the day.

    (Reporting by Philip Blenkinsop; Editing by Janet Lawrence)