Three police recruits die, 1,200 poisoned

Three police recruits died and more than 1,200 recruits felt sick after eating suspicious meals Sunday evening at a military training base some 120 km southeast of Baghdad, a medical source said on Monday.

"The men started to feel sick after they ate meals breaking their daylight fast on Sunday at the Numaniyah military training base, some 120 km southeast of Baghdad," a medical source in Numaniyah hospital said on condition of anonymity.

"The victims were evacuated to Numaniyah and Kut hospitals by ambulances, military and civilian cars," the source said.

The source said it remained unknown whether the victims were poisoned deliberately, saying the incident was under investigation.

Source: Xinhua