Foreigners identified among NZ quake dead
The Associated Press, Wellington | Thu, 03/03/2011 7:04 AM
Two Israeli men have been named as the first foreigners among the dead in New Zealand's devastating earthquake.
Police Superintendent Sam Hoyle said on Thursday the number of bodies pulled from rubble in the southern city of Christchurch from the Feb. 22 quake has risen to 161.
Many people are still missing and officials say the final death toll could be 240.
Experts are struggling to identify many of the bodies because of the extent of injuries caused to people who were crushed.
Only 13 names have been publicly released.
Two Israeli backpackers, aged 22 and 23, were added to the list on Thursday.
An unknown number of other foreigners, many of them Asian students at an English language school that was destroyed, were also killed.
