Turkey: 558 irregular migrants held across country

ANKARA

A total of 558 irregular migrants were held across Turkey on Friday, security sources said.

Security personnel spotted groups of migrants in western Edirne province who were attempting to cross to Europe, said the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

The migrants are from Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Morocco, Tunisia, Iran, Iraq, Palestine, Egypt and Syria, the sources said.

In southern Hatay province, border forces held 51 Syrian migrants.

Also, gendarmerie forces detained 22 Afghan migrants in northeastern Ardahan province.

In western Kirklareli province, 15 Afghan nationals who were trying to go abroad using illegal routes were held, the sources added.

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

Some 268,000 irregular migrants were held in Turkey in 2018, according to the Interior Ministry.