Turkish security forces on 24-hour watch along Iranian border

VAN, Turkey

Turkish security forces at the Iranian border have stepped up security measures to prevent illegal immigration, choke off smuggling, and prevent PKK terrorists from infiltrating the country.

Huseyin Ediz Tercanoglu, head of the 2nd Operations Branch of the Security Directorate’s Special Operations Division, told reporters on Monday that the troops on the frontier are carrying out a key mission.

Security forces respond quickly to incidents they detect with thermal and night vision cameras in Van, eastern Turkey, the country’s province sharing the longest line with Iran.

With the support of dozens of armored vehicles, drones, thermal cameras, and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), security forces keep the Iranian border under control.

All technological means are used to prevent irregular migrants from crossing the border, even when they try to take advantage of the dark of night.

"We’re working in places where smuggling used to be common,” said Tercanoglu. “The entire environment is monitored by 360-degree rotating thermal cameras. If there’s any movement, we send our troops there."

The soldiers’ mission has taken on more importance since the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, with fears of a new irregular migration wave fleeing the country through Iran on the way to Turkey.

Turkey currently hosts some 4 million refugees – more than any other country in the world – and says it cannot absorb a new wave.

Turkish officials have said Turkey’s capabilities at the Iranian border are more than enough to prevent a new wave of migration.

In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US, and the EU – has been responsible for the deaths of 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants.

PKK forces commonly seek shelter across the border in northern Iraq, but the terror group also has branches in Iran.