It was the deadliest train accident since 2013, when 80 people died after a train veered off a curved section of track outside the northwestern city of Santiago de Compostela.

The crash happened on Sunday evening when a train operated by rail company Iryo travelling from Malaga to Madrid derailed near Adamuz, crossing onto the other track where it crashed into an oncoming train, which also derailed.

The interior ministry said at least 39 people died, raising the toll from 21 given by police late on Sunday.

Another 123 people were injured, including five very seriously and 24 seriously, a ministry spokeswoman added.

Transport Minister Oscar Puente told reporters the disaster took place on a straight part of the track, which was completely renovated,.

The first train to derail was "practically new", making the accident "extremely strange", he added.

Rail experts "are very surprised by this accident because it is very strange and very difficult to explain at this stage," the minister said.

Rail operator Iryo said around 300 people were on board its Malaga-Madrid service.

Renfe, the operator of the second train, has not said how many passengers it was carrying.

Spain has Europe's largest high-speed rail network, with more than 3,000 kilometers of dedicated tracks connecting major cities including Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Valencia, and Malaga.

The hundreds of passengers left in the wreckage hampered the frantic work of emergency services.

"The problem is that the carriages are twisted, so the metal is twisted with the people inside," Francisco Carmona, head of firefighters in Cordoba, told public broadcaster RTVE.

"We have even had to remove a dead person to be able to reach someone alive. It is hard, tricky work," he added.

Some of the carriages had tumbled down an embankment of four meters, Sanz said.

A passenger on the second train, bound for the city of Huelva, who gave only her first name Montse, told Spanish public television the train, "with a jolt, came to a complete stop, and everything went dark".

She described being thrown around in the last carriage and seeing luggage tumble on other passengers.

"The attendant behind me hit her head and was bleeding. There were children crying," she added. "Luckily, I was in the last car. I feel like I was given a second chance at life."

Survivor Lucas Meriako, who was travelling on the first train that derailed, told La Sexta television that "this looks like a horror movie".

"We felt a very strong hit from behind and the feeling that the whole train was about to collapse, break... there were many injured due to the glass," he said.

High-speed services between Madrid and the Andalusian cities of Cordoba, Seville, Malaga and Huelva would be suspended on Monday, Adif announced.

"Today is a night of deep pain for our country owing to the tragic rail accident in Adamuz," Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez wrote on X.

"No words can alleviate such great suffering, but I want them to know that the whole country is by their side in this tough moment," he added.

The royal palace said on X that Spain's King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia were following the news "with great concern", offering "our most heartfelt condolences to the relatives and loved ones of the dead, as well as our love and wishes for a swift recovery to the injured".

French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen were among the world leaders offering condolences.

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