August 10, 2008	Sunday	Sha’aban 7, 1429

RAWALPINDI, Aug 9: Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has released the images of all 13 illegal Pakistani immigrants found dead on the outskirts of Istanbul on July 30, an official source said.

It had been presumed that among the dead immigrants, most were Pakistanis but the authorities were unable to confirm their nationalities.

However they were able to do so after the Pakistani consulate in Istanbul confirmed it to Islamabad.

As many as 100 illegal immigrants are still in the custody of Turkish authorities who are interrogating them. Of the 100 illegal immigrants, 97 are of Pakistani origin and one each from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Myanmar.

In his letter to FIA’s additional director-general Mirza Yasin, the consul general said all 13 illegal immigrants, who were found dead on the outskirts of Istanbul, were Pakistani national.

He said efforts were being made to trace family members of the deceased at the earliest as according to Turkish law an unclaimed body was buried 15 days after it was received in the morgue. In this way the deadline is August 13.

The body of one of the deceased has already been sent to his native town, Daska, in Sialkot district.

According to the FIA authorities, a truck carrying about 130 illegal immigrants had reached the outskirts of Istanbul when the people inside it started shouting as they felt suffocated.

By the time the truck driver stopped the vehicle, 13 of the people had died and 18 others were in serious condition.

The truck driver managed to escape.