In the second traffic accident in a week that resulted in multiple deaths, an Egged bus traveling from Jerusalem to Ein Gedi, near the Dead Sea, skidded off a rain-slicked highway and plunged into a ravine, killing eight, four of them tourists.
Eighteen others on the bus were injured, four seriously.
Israel Television identified the tourists as being from Germany and Brazil. Their names were not immediately released because Israeli authorities were still trying to contact their families.
An initial police inquiry into the accident found that the bus was speeding.
The Egged bus cooperative ordered its own inquiry, and said all drivers would undergo a refresher course on winter driving conditions.
Last week, 10 people were killed in a traffic accident northwest of Jerusalem.
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