Istanbul, Aug 26 (DPA) Four military conscripts in Turkey died after an officer forced one of them to hold an armed hand grenade for hours in punishment for falling asleep on duty, the Turkish daily Taraf reported Wednesday.

The grenade exploded after the young soldier had been holding it for more than four hours, killing him and three other conscripts. The officer had removed the pin off the grenade.

Surviving conscripts reported none of the group of soldiers had known how to secure the grenade without the pin. The incident, which was only reported Wednesday, happened in the Central Anatolian city of Elazig ten days ago.