ISTANBUL: A former BBC journalist, Jacky Sutton, was found dead in a toilet at Istanbul's Ataturk Airport under mysterious circumstances, according to a report published on the BBC website.

The 50-year-old woman is believed to have been working as the acting Iraq director for the Institute for War and Peace Reporting (IWPR) and was travelling to Irbil, northern Iraq. The London-based IWPR supports local journalism in countries affected by conflict and crisis.

The previous director of the institute was killed earlier in May this year in a car bomb attack in Iraq. A memorial service for the former director was held in London last week.

The British Foreign Office said it was "providing consular assistance to the family at this time" and did not provide any other details.

BBC correspondent Ben Ando said that the ex-BBC journalist had missed a connecting flight which was due to depart for Iraq two and a half hours after her arrival at Ataturk Airport from London on Saturday.

"Local media are reporting that she didn't have enough money to purchase a replacement ticket and then she was found dead in the toilets a couple of hours later," Ando was quoted in the BBC report adding that, "What exactly happened though is not known."

She had held various positions in International Non Governmental Organisations (INGOs) including the United Nations. The former journalist, who spoke five languages, was also studying for a PhD at the Centre for Arab and Islamic Studies at the Australian National University.

Sutton's research focused on international development support to female media professionals in Iraq and Afghanistan between 2003 and 2013.