Turk among eight shot dead found north of Baghdad: police

SAMARA, Iraq, Feb 17 (AFP) - A Turkish national is thought to be among eight people found shot dead north of Baghdad, Iraqi police said Thursday, adding that all the victims were employed on a US military base.
Initial reports after the corpses were found near the town of Balad on Wednesday had indicated that four foreigners might be among the victims.
"Seven of the dead are Iraqis but the eighth is believed to be a Turk as he has the name 'Turkey' tattooed on his body, but none of them were carying identification papers," Balad police officer Adel Abdallah said.
He said the eight were abducted as they were heading to work on a US base some 10 kilometres (six miles) from Balad.
A police officer who was a member of the patrol which discovered the bodies said most of the victims had their hands tied behind their backs. They had all been shot and one of them also had his throat cut, police said.
Dr Mohammed Jaafar of Balad hospital said the victims had been dead for at least three days when they were found.

02/17/2005 09:58 GMT - AFP