Examination Confirmed the Poisoning of President Turgut Ozal

Turkish media reported that the examination revealed high levels of strychnine in the remains of the former Turkish President Turgut Ozal. The exhumation of the body was conducted at the urging of his close relatives, who claimed that Ozal was poisoned.

Ozal died in April 1993. On the day of his death, Ozal's spokesman Arif Yuksel expressed doubts about the natural death of the President. He demanded an autopsy, but Ankara refused to do so under the pretext that "the family does not agree."

All these years in Turkey periodically nominated was the version of the poisoning of Ozal by mixing some poison to the food. On the day of the death Ozal visited the Embassy of Bulgaria, where he drank some apple juice, and then he died.

The current President, Abdullah Gul, on June 11 of this year issued an instruction to exhume the remains. The grave was opened on 2 October, and samples of the hair, internal organs and other body parts were taken.

The discovered poison paralyzes the respiratory tract, clogs blood vessels of the heart and, as a result, causes death.

"I'm not surprised. I have talked about this for 18 years. Now you have to find out who did this," said the son of the late President, Ahmed Ozal.-05D06-