Over 156 undocumented migrants held in Turkey

By Sibel Ugurlu

ANKARA, Turkey (AA) - Turkish security forces on Sunday held at least 156 undocumented migrants, according to security sources.

In the central Sivas province, security forces held three Afghan nationals in a taxi during a road check along the Sivas-Erzincan highway, said the sources, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

The taxi driver was arrested while the migrants who illegally entered Turkey were referred to provincial migration authorities.

In the northwestern Canakkale province’s Ayvacik district, another 24 Afghan nationals, including women and children, were held after coast guard units stopped a dinghy en route to the Greek island of Lesbos, said the source.

They were taken to the Ayvacik detention center for possible deportation to their home country.

In Dikili in the Aegean Izmir province, the gendarmerie held 119 Syrians trying to get to Greece illegally by boat.

During an operation by Turkish security forces in the northwestern border province of Edirne, 10 migrants from Pakistan and Syria were held during a road check.

The driver of the light commercial vehicle involved was arrested.

They were all referred to provincial migration authorities.

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