Refugees bodies identified

[TamilNet, Saturday, 01 August 1998, 23:59 GMT]
Fifteen bodies, believed to be refugees who drowned when their boat capsized in the Palk Straits near Rameswaram on the South Indian coast, have been washed ashore at Delft and Kaytes, islands off the Jaffna Peninsula, said sources in Jaffna.

Of the 15 bodies, 13 are yet to be identified. The majority of the bodies are of women the sources added.

The bodies, many of which are putrefying after being in the sea, are in the Jaffna Teaching Hospital and the Kaytes District Hospital.

Since the ethnic riots of 1983, when thousands died, many have tried to flee the ongoing conflict by hazarding the treacherous journey across the Palk straits to India.

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