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At least 17 people have been killed and dozens more hurt after a train derailed in eastern Iran, state media report.

The train, which was carrying 348 passengers, came off the line between the cities of Mashhad and Yazd about 50km (31 miles) from Tabas.

Emergency services officials said the train collided with an excavator before being knocked off the track.

They warned that the death toll could rise because many of the injured were in a critical condition in hospital.

Tabas County Governor Ali Akbar Rahimi told state media that four of the train's seven carriages were knocked off the line.

Footage posted online by local media showed a number of carriages on their side, as well as a yellow excavator on its side by the track.