ISTANBUL - The death toll in Turkey from drinking bootleg liquor made from deadly methyl alchohol increased to 16 on Saturday when one more person died in an Istanbul hospital, health authorities said Saturday.
Sixteen other people were still in hospital after having drunk bootleg raki, Turkey's aniseed-based national drink, a spokesman for the city's health department told AFP.
"We expect a few of them to be discharged today, they are getting much better," he said.
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.
The government has brushed aside the criticism and Finance Minister Kemal Unakitan announced Friday that they had no plans to pull down taxes.
Health officials have said that the bootleg raki contained up to 200 times more than the permitted amount of methyl alcohol, which can kill if drunk in large amounts.
Police have arrested at least 15 people and seized thousands of bottles in several operations across the country.
03/05/2005 11:00 GMT