Turkey hosts total 4,082,693 asylum seekers: Deputy interior minister

ANKARA

The total number of asylum seekers in Turkey is 4,082,693, and of them, 3,762,686 comprise Syrians under temporary protection, Deputy Interior Minister İsmail Çataklı has said.

“About 122,000 of this number have been passive registrations for two years. In other words, there is no sign that they are in Turkey,” daily Hürriyet quoted Çataklı as saying on May 8.

According to official figures, there are currently 5,500,690 foreigners in Turkey, he said and emphasized that not all of them are refugees. This figure includes students, British, German and Russian residents in Antalya, and foreigners such as trained police officers, Çataklı added.

Explaining that 323,859 irregular migrants have been deported in the last five years, Çataklı said that 1,463,272 irregular migrants and asylum seekers have left Turkey since 2016.

Afghans rank first in the irregular migration wave to Turkey. Currently, there are 12,000 foreign nationals from 80 different countries in 30 repatriation centers across the country. Of these, 7,000 are from Afghanistan, 1,500 are from Syria and 1,000 are from Pakistan. In 2022, a total of 21,087 people from 113 different nationalities were deported. Among those deported, Afghanistan ranks first with 9,654 and Pakistan ranks second with 4,206, the daily reported.

According to the information given by Çataklı, 497,926 Syrians voluntarily returned to the areas where safety was ensured.

He noted that a total of 8 million immigrants, including 6 million in Idlib, Olive Branch, Euphrates Shield and Peace Spring regions, and 2 million on the Iranian side of the border, are kept stable.

“Turkey is the only country in the world, including the European Union, with a fully-fledged holistic migration policy,” he stated.

Turkey is the only country that can manage its immigration policy, including the EU, in accordance with the law and humanitarian values, he said. “Turkey is the only country that makes an effort to stop migration at its source.”

Turkey is a country that sends back more immigrants than all European Union countries send, Çataklı noted.

Of the 200,950 Syrians who were granted Turkish citizenship, 47,000 are Turkmen, Çataklı said on his Twitter account.

Furthermore, 101,995 Ahıska Turks, 17,000 Afghan Turks and 6,787 Uyghur Turks were granted citizenship. The citizenship process of 2,000 Uyghur Turks continues, Çataklı said.