DNA testing of families of 39 missing Indians in Iraq done: Government

The government has been making all possible efforts to trace the 39 Indian workers missing in Iraq and currently it is trying to obtain proof of their being alive or dead, Sushma Swaraj said.

New Delhi: India has completed the DNA testing of the families of 39 Indians missing from Iraq's Mosul city since 2014 and forwarded the samples to Iraqi authorities for matching with the mortal remains in the graves there, the Lok Sabha was informed on Wednesday.

The government has been making all possible efforts to trace the 39 Indian workers missing in Iraq and currently it is trying to obtain proof of their being alive or dead, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said in a written reply to a question.

Asked if the government has initiated and completed the DNA testing of the families of 39 Indian workers who were kidnapped from Mosul, Swaraj said, "Yes, the government has initiated the process... DNA samples, as received from our respective state governments, have been forwarded to the Iraqi authorities."

Urgent steps were taken to arrange for DNA samples of the family members of the missing Indians to assist the Iraqi authorities in their investigations, she said.

The process was initiated after Iraqi authorities informed India about the mass graves found in and around Mosul and Badush areas following the liberation of that region from the control of the terrorist organisation ISIS.

"The Iraqi Martyr's Foundation asked for DNA samples of the close relatives of the missing Indians for matching with the mortal remains...," the minister said.