MOSCOW, May 10 (RIA Novosti) - Twelve people were killed and five were injured in two major traffic accidents in southern Russia, a police source said on Saturday.

Early Saturday a Zhiguli car swerved into oncoming lane on a highway in Russia's Saratov Region and collided with another Zhiguli car. The drivers as well as four passengers were killed on the scene, while three other passengers were hospitalized with severe injuries.

A similar traffic accident occurred also on early Saturday in the Arkhangelsk Region, where a Zhiguli car shifted into oncoming lane and hit another car, killing both drivers and four passengers, while two more passengers were hospitalized.