Nearly 270 irregular migrants held across Turkey

By Osman Uras, Cihan Demirci and Mesut Karaduman

ANKARA (AA) – A total of 269 irregular migrants were held across Turkey on Tuesday, according to multiple security sources.

In Malkara in the northwestern Tekirdag province, 15 migrants were held while trying to cross the border illegally, said the sources, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

Another 233 irregular migrants from Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Jordan, Algeria, Iraq, Palestine, Egypt and Syria, were held in the northwestern Edirne province while trying to cross the border.

In the southwestern Mugla province, 21 irregular Syrian migrants, including women and children, were held while preparing to illegally cross to Greek islands.

All of them were taken to provincial migration management offices for further procedures.

Turkey has been a main route for irregular migrants trying to cross to Europe, especially since 2011, the start of the Syrian civil war.

Over 265,000 irregular migrants were held in Turkey in 2018, according to the country’s Interior Ministry.

* Writing by Zehra Nur Duz