More than 700 undocumented migrants detained across Turkey: State media
ANKARA
A total of 711 undocumented migrants were detained across Turkey, state-run Anadolu Agency reported on May 29, citing security sources.
Security units rounded up 571 migrants during patrols in the northwestern Edirne province, a security source speaking on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on talking to the media was quoted as saying.
The migrants included Moroccan, Syrian, Palestinian, Algerian, Iraqi, Bangladeshi, Pakistani and Afghan nationals, the agency reported.
Also, in the southern Hatay province, 22 Syrian refugees were rounded up while they were attempting to enter Turkey from Syria via an illegal route, another security source said.
Separately, 12 undocumented migrants were detained in the eastern province of Van.
Also, in the eastern Kars province, 106 migrants including Afghan and Pakistani nationals were detained.
They were all referred to provincial migration authorities.
Turkey has been the main route for refugees trying to cross into Europe, especially since the beginning of the civil war in Syria.
Among the migrants held in 2017 in Turkey, the majority came from Pakistan — around 15,000 — followed by Afghans at around 12,000. Syrians totaled 10,000.
115 migrants caught en route to Greece
Separately, some 115 undocumented migrants were caught by the Turkish Coast Guard on May 28 as they were on their way to a Greek island, Doğan News Agency reported.
The migrants were caught in two separate operations carried out by Turkish law enforcement officials in the western İzmir and Aydın provinces, the agency’s report said.
Migrants of Iraqi and Syrian nationalities, 47 of them children, were then handed over to the Immigration Directorate, the agency reported.
