UPDATE - Over 180 undocumented migrants held in Turkey

ADDS MIGRANTS IN EDIRNE

By Zafer Taygur, Seyhan Kirici, and Bahri Asik

VAN/BALIKESIR/AYDIN, Turkey (AA) - A total of 183 undocumented migrants were held across Turkey, security sources said on Friday.

In eastern Van province, gendarme units held 17 undocumented migrants from Afghanistan, said a source, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on talking to media.

The migrants were later referred to the district police.

According to northwestern Balikesir’s governor’s office, 25 Syrians who were trying to illegally cross into Greek Islands were held in Edremit district.

Meanwhile, coast guards held 38 Syrian nationals in a dinghy who were trying to get to Greece illegally off the coast of the Aegean province of Aydin’s Didim district.

In northwestern Edirne, border units and regional gendarme held 103 undocumented migrants, including Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Algerian, and Syrian nationals, another source said.

The migrants were held in Bosnakoy village and the districts of Uzunkopru and Ipsala.

All the migrants held were sent to regional immigration departments.

Turkey has been a main route for refugees trying to cross into Europe, especially since the beginning of the civil war in Syria.