TEHRAN - Three Iranian amputee football players have lost their lives in the earthquake in Turkey.

Mohammadreza Mirahmadi, Mehdi Saeedavi and Hamed Matroudi were trapped under rubble.

Jafar Asgari, head of Iran's Amputee Football Association, said that the players were found dead.

The players were members of Malatya Metropolitan Belediyespor team.

Tehran Times extends deepest sympathy to his family, loved ones, and friends over their demise.

The total death toll from the earthquakes that struck southwest Turkey and northern Syria on Monday has climbed to above 20,000, a tally that is expected to rise as crews comb the rubble of thousands of toppled buildings.