More than 240 undocumented migrants held in Turkey

ÇANAKKALE/ADANA

Security forces held a total of 249 undocumented migrants across Turkey, state-run Anadolu Agency reported on May 10, citing officials.

In the northwestern Çanakkale province, Turkish gendarmerie forces rounded up 42 Afghan nationals in the Bademli village of the Ayvacık district, the agency reported, quoting sources who spoke on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

Separately in Çanakkale, the coast guard held 57 Syrian nationals after spotting a rubber raft heading to the Greek island of Lesbos.

In the southern Adana province, 51 Afghan, Pakistani, and Iranian nationals who were planning to cross into Europe through Turkey were held.

In Turkey’s Aegean province of Aydın’s Didim district, the Turkish coast guard held 93 Syrian and six Iraqi nationals after they were spotted in two rubber boats heading to the Greek islands.

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

Among 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, Anadolu Agency reported.