CAIRO, Jan 9 (Aswat Masriya) – A Cairo court sentenced Saturday three individuals deemed responsible for the July collision of a ferryboat and a heavy-cargo ship in the Nile River, leading to the death of 40 people.

The majority of the victims were children aged 4 to 14.  

The al-Warraq Misdemeanors Court sentenced the runaway owner of the sunken boat to 10 years in prison, the boat's captain and the cargo ship's captain to seven and five years consecutively.

The court also ordered the defendants to pay fines, with the boat's owner fined with EGP 300, while the boat and cargo ship's captains were fined with EGP 650 and EGP 350 respectively. The court also required defendants to pay compensation, with a separate lawsuit to be filed in order to rule for a specific amount of compensation.   

The defendants were accused of causing the death of the victims, operating a boat without a license and forging a license, and sailing in the Nile River during nighttime in violation of the law.

The Prosecution further stated that the heavy-cargo ship violated the Nile River navigation safety measures and was sailing without its lights on.

During trial session, the defendants denied their responsibility for the accident.

Meanwhile, the court rejected a civil lawsuit filed against the president with regards to the accident.

Following July's collision, the Egyptian cabinet decided to ban navigation in the Nile River along Greater Cairo form sunset to sunrise for a period of two months. The cabinet also introduced a number of safety measures and created harsher penalties for violators.  

The measures included checking the safety of all ferryboats and immediately stopping any boat that does not meet safety standards.

Ferryboats were also obliged to hang clear signs showing the duration of their license and the number of passengers allowed.

But recently, on Dec. 31, a ferryboat sank in the Egyptian province of Kafr el-Sheikh leading to the death of at least 15, out of a total of 17 passengers.

According to the Kafr el-Sheikh governor, passenger overload as well as bad weather conditions caused the sinking of the ferryboat. Investigations also revealed that the boat's license had expired eight months before the incident.

Two officials were detained, while two others were temporarily released on Jan. 3, pending investigation into the ferryboat accident.

Transportation accidents in Egypt are a frequent occurrence, leading to a large number of deaths every year.

In 2006, the famous sinking of the Egyptian ferry al-Salam Boccaccio 98 in the Red Sea led to the death of around 1000 passengers, mostly Egyptians returning from Saudi Arabia.