More than 20 Afghan migrants injured in traffic accident in Turkey’s Ağrı

AĞRI- Anadolu Agency

Twenty-one undocumented migrants, including three women, from Afghanistan were injured when a minibus carrying them rolled over into a ditch in the Diyadin district of the eastern province of Ağrı, state-run Anadolu Agency reported on Aug. 28. 

The injured were sent to a state hospital in Diyadin. Seventeen of the undocumented migrants were later discharged from hospital after receiving medical care while four others were transferred to another hospital in Ağrı. Those sent to Ağrı did not sustain life-threatening injuries.

Meanwhile, security forces have launched an operation to nab the minibus driver who fled after the accident.

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

Among the 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.