- City Fajr Shuruq Duhr Asr Magrib Isha
- Dubai 04:06 05:29 12:18 15:42 19:02 20:25
People mourn in a graveyard on May 16, 2014 in the western town of Soma after an explosion and a fire in a coal mine killed at least 284 workers three days ago. With the government warning that the toll from the blast in the western town of Soma would likely top 300, Turkey's prime minister faced fresh criticism after video emerged of him apparently shouting an anti-Israel slur at angry protesters during a visit Wednesday to the disaster site. (AFP)
The death toll in Turkey's worst ever mining disaster rose to 299 on Saturday as a new fire hampered rescue attempts, the energy minister said.
Taner Yildiz told reporters that three miners were still thought to be underground based on families' testimonies while 485 miners have either escaped or been rescued since Tuesday's mine blast and fire in the western town of Soma.
A new fire broke out Saturday in another section of the mine, about 250 metre away from where the miners are trapped, creating further difficulties for rescue teams, Yildiz added.
The mine disaster has sparked a wave of fury against the government ahead of August presidential elections which the embattled Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is expected to win.
Turkish police on Friday fired tear gas and water cannon at thousands of protesters in Soma and broke up peaceful protests across the country.
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