VK Singh to leave for Iraq to bring back bodies of 39 Indians

New Delhi [India], Apr 1 (ANI): Minister of State for External Affairs General V K Singh (retd) will leave for Mosul to bring back the mortal remains of the 39 Indians who were killed in the war-torn country.

The minister is expected to bring back the bodies by late Monday, following which he will travel to Amritsar, Punjab and Patna to hand over the mortal remains to their respective families.

"I am leaving for Iraq, will be getting back mortal remains of the 39 Indians. Tomorrow I will return to Amritsar, and then will go to Kolkata and then Patna. The families of the victims have been informed about the same," Singh said.

On March 20, External Affairs Minister (EAM) Sushma Swaraj informed the Rajya Sabha members in the Parliament that the 39 Indian nationals, who went missing in Mosul in 2014, were killed by the terror outfit Islamic State (IS).

The 39 persons, most of whom hailed from Punjab, were working on projects near Mosul when they were kidnapped. (ANI)

This story has not been edited. It has been published as provided by ANI