Pakistan police say that four people accused of killing around 100 children have confessed before a judicial magistrate in Lahore.

The four include alleged serial killer, Javed Iqbal, who disclosed the killings in a written note addressed to a newspaper in December.

The accused were transferred to prison from police custody after investigations were completed.

Deputy Inspector General of Lahore Police, Tahir Saleem Dogar, told the BBC that all four accused had made confessional statements, following which they were sent to prison.

The statements were made before judicial magistrate Mian Ghulam Hussain in his chambers, and journalists were not allowed to be present.

The deputy inspector general said that trial proceedings would start next week.

Dramatic arrest

Thirty-eight-year old Javed Iqbal shocked the nation when he made the startling disclosure about the serial killings in a written note addressed to a newspaper in Lahore in.

He went into hiding immediately afterwards, prompting a wide-scale police search.

But he surrendered to the police two weeks ago after making a dramatic appearance in the office of the same newspaper.

In the meantime, more than 70 parents were able to identify the photographs and personal belongings of their missing children, which had been recovered from Javed Iqbal's house.

Two of his alleged accomplices had been arrested before he himself surrendered, which also led to the arrest of a third alleged accomplice last Tuesday.

The four accused were brought to the court premises amid tight security, and it is not yet clear whether the trial proceedings will be held in open court or on the jail premises.