DNA Sampling to Identify Remains of Hilla Terror Attack Victims Over: Iranian Official
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Director General of Tehran’s Legal Medicine Department Masoud Qadi-Pasha said the process of DNA sampling to identify the recovered bodies of victims of a recent terrorist bombing in Iraq that killed dozens of pilgrims is over.
DNA samples were taken from 52 bodies, 36 women and 12 men, last night at Tehran Forensic Center in the presence of the deputy prosecutor general of Tehran and three teams of forensic scientists, Qadi-Pasha said on Saturday.
The identity of the victims will be fully established after their close relatives join the DNA testing, he added.
Qadi-Pasha further said four corpses are beyond recognition as they have been badly burned as a result of the terror attack.
According to reports, at least 100 people were killed and dozens wounded in the bomb blast at a gas station near Hilla, 100 km (62 miles) south of Baghdad, on Thursday.
The Daesh (ISIL or ISIS) terrorist group claimed responsibility for the assault.
On Friday, Iran’s counselor in the holy city of Karbala Massoud Hosseini said 28 Iranian identification cards had been found at the site of the explosion.
He said 71 bags of human remains had been transferred to Iran on Friday evening for DNA testing in order to identify the victims.
