At least 99 irregular migrants held in western Turkey

By Safak Yel and Mehmet Yavas

IZMIR/CANAKKALE, Turkey (AA) - At least 99 irregular migrants were held in western Turkey, security sources said late Tuesday.

In Turkey’s Aegean province of Izmir, 50 irregular migrants – including women and children -- were held in Dikili district, said a security source who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

The migrants – 23 Palestinians, 14 Syrians and 13 Afghans -- were trying to cross into Greece via Greek islands in a rubber boat, the source added.

In Canakkale province, 49 migrants – including Afghan women and children -- were held during gendarmerie patrols in Ayvacik district.

All of the migrants were referred to provincial migration offices.

Turkey has been a main route for irregular migrants trying to cross into Europe, especially since 2011, when Syria’s civil war began.