85 asylum seekers held in Turkey

By Osman Akca, Salih Baran, and Ilhami Erkilic

MUGLA/ EDIRNE/ ERZURUM, Turkey (AA) - At least 85 asylum seekers, including Syrian refugees, were held during operations across three provinces on Monday, gendarmerie sources said.

Gendarmerie forces followed two school buses in Gavoroglu district of southwestern Mugla province which led to the discovery of 48 Iraqis and 27 Syrians who were hiding in the woods. The drivers of the bus were also detained, the sources said.

It was found out that the asylum seekers got on buses in Istanbul paying $3,000 - 5,000 per person. They were planning to first cross into Rhodes Island of Greece and later into Italy in another boat, the sources added.

In southwestern Edirne province, four asylum seekers were arrested by border guards. Two of them were Syrian nationals trying to illegally cross into the Greece border, the source added.

One of the asylum seekers, identified by initials H.Y. Y., had been fired from his teaching job for sympathizing with PKK terrorists.

The PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and EU -- resumed its armed campaign against Turkey in July 2015. Since then, it has been responsible for the deaths of more than 1,200 Turkish security personnel and civilians.

Also, in the eastern Erzurum province, six foreign nationals who illegally entered Turkey were detained, the local governor office said.