UPDATE - 249 undocumented migrants held in Turkey

UPDATES NUMBER OF MIGRANTS, CHANGES LEDE, HEADLINE

CANAKKALE/ADANA/AYDIN, Turkey (AA) - Security forces on Thursday held a total of 249 undocumented migrants across Turkey, officials said.

In northwestern Canakkale province, Turkish gendarmerie forces rounded up 42 Afghan nationals in Bademli village of Ayvacik district, the sources said on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

Separately in Canakkale, the coast guard held 57 Syrian nationals after spotting a rubber raft heading to the Greek island of Lesbos.

In southern Adana province, 51 Afghan, Pakistani, and Iranian nationals who were planning to cross into Europe through Turkey were held.

In Turkey’s Aegean province of Aydin’s Didim district, Turkish coast guard held 93 Syrian and 6 Iraqi nationals after they were spotted in two rubber boats heading to the Greek islands.
Turkey has been a main route for refugees trying to cross into Europe, especially since the beginning of the civil war in Syria.

Among migrants held in 2017 in Turkey, the majority came from Pakistan -- around 15,000 -- followed by Afghans at around 12,000. Syrians totaled about 10,000.

There has been a 60 percent increase in migrant flow since 2016. The number was 31,000 in 2016.