ISTANBUL - The death toll in Turkey from bootleg alcohol rose to 15 Friday after three more people died in hospital in Istanbul, health authorities said.
At least 29 people are being treated for intoxication from methyl alcohol after having drunk the bootleg raki, Turkey`s aniseed-based national drink.
The previous death toll, from the Anatolia news agency, was 12, with around 40 people in hospital, 10 of them in serious condition.
The deaths have sparked panic in Istanbul drinking establishments, with many bar owners blaming higher taxes on alcoholic beverages by a government with Islamist roots for the emergence of illegal liquor factories.
Health officials have said that the raki contained up to 200 times more than the permitted amount of methyl alcohol, which can kill if drunk in large amounts.
Police have detained 15 people and seized thousands of bottles in several operations. Five people have been charged with "endangering a person`s health."
The alarm was first raised on Sunday when four people died after a meal at a restaurant in a working-class district of Istanbul, the country`s largest city straddling Europe and Asia.
03/04/2005 14:51 GMT