Jalandhar: Amidst a hostage crisis, a travel agents association today (Aug 2, 2004) demanded a "through probe" into migration of a large number of youth to Iraq and Kuwait through "illegal channels".

"The circumstances leading to on-going hostage episode, return of hundreds of desperate youth from Iraq, raises a question as to how they went to Iraq," Ramesh Bhatia, president of Punjab Travel Agents association told reporters.

"We demand a through probe into the modus operandi of taking these youths to Kuwait and Iraq," he said.

As already admitted by some of the returned youths that they had to pay big sums of money landing them in debt, it has to be enquired whether they reached there through legal channels, Bhatia said.