UPDATE: Nearly 260 migrants held across Turkey

UPDATES WITH NUMBER OF MIGRANTS HELD; CHANGES HEADLINE, DECK, LEDE

By Ilker Gurel

ANKARA (AA) - Some 256 irregular migrants were held across Turkey, security forces said on Monday.

Police held 11 irregular migrants in the northwestern Edirne province, said a source, speaking on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

The Pakistani migrants were allegedly preparing to cross illegally to Europe, it added.

Separately, 38 migrants -- Afghan and Pakistani nationals -- were held by police in the eastern Van province.

Security forces also seized 11 kilograms (24 pounds) of cannabis during the operation.

In the northwestern Canakkale province, 59 Afghan nationals in a rubber boat were held by the Turkish Coast Guard off the coast of Ayvacik.

In another northwestern province, Balikesir, 20 Afghan nationals were held by gendarmerie forces while preparing to cross Greece illegally.

Security forces also arrested one alleged human smuggler.

Separately, in the southern Hatay province -- bordering Syria -- 82 migrants who illegally entered Turkey were held by security forces at the border.

Some 46 irregular migrants -- Palestinian, Syrian, Iraqi and Egyptian nationals -- were held by the Turkish Coast Guard in the Aegean Sea off the coast of Mugla.

All the migrants were later referred to provincial migration directorates.

Turkey has been the main route for refugees trying to cross to Europe, especially since 2011, when the Syrian civil war began.

Some 265,000 irregular migrants were held in Turkey in 2018, according to the Interior Ministry.

The irregular migrants were mostly Afghan, Pakistani, Syrian, and Iraqi nationals.