More than 160 irregular migrants held in Turkey

By Huseyin Yildiz, Safak Yel and Esber Ayaydin

HATAY/AYDIN, Turkey

At least 163 irregular migrants have been held across Turkey, security sources said on Thursday.

In Kirikhan in the southern Hatay province, security forces held six Syrians, including two women, found in a light commercial vehicle during a road check, said the sources, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

The driver, who is also a Syrian, was arrested.

Separately, Turkish Coast Guard patrols identified a dinghy carrying 25 irregular migrants, mostly Syrians, off Aydin province’s Kusadasi district trying to cross to Greek islands.

Twenty-five migrants, including 14 children, were also caught in a dinghy off Dilek Island in Aydin.

Some 90 irregular migrants were also held in Dikili town in the Aegean Izmir province after being found in the back of a truck with two small watercraft.

The group was planning to cross to Greece.

The truck driver was detained on human smuggling charges.

Also, in the southwestern Mugla province, 17 irregular migrants were held, including Syrian, Iraqi, Afghan and Palestinian nationals.

All the migrants were referred to provincial migration authorities.

Turkey has been a main route for refugees trying to cross into Europe, especially since 2011, the beginning of Syria's civil war.

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.