31 October 2018•Update: 31 October 2018
By Ozgur Tiran, Cemal Asan, Mustafa Yildirim, Mustafa Kurt and Salih Baran
ANKARA
At least 556 irregular migrants were held across Turkey, security sources said Wednesday.
In northwestern province of Kirklareli, Turkish gendarmerie units rounded up 28 irregular migrants -- nationals of Pakistan and Algeria -- near the Bulgarian border, said the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media.
A suspect was arrested over human trafficking.
Meanwhile, 133 irregular migrants from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan traveling on foot were held in the eastern province of Van.
Separately, coast guards conducted an operation in the Aegean Izmir province’s Cesme district to prevent irregular migration.
A total of 110 migrants, mostly Syrians, were held in a rubber boat while trying to cross to the Greek islands.
Gendarmerie units in the Alanya district of Mediterranean Antalya province held 26 migrants and arrested a suspect over human smuggling charges.
Turkish gendarmerie units also rounded up 259 irregular migrants in operations in several districts in the northwestern Edirne province.
All of the migrants were referred to provincial migration offices.
Turkey has been a main route for irregular migrants trying to cross into Europe, especially since 2011, when the Syrian civil war began.
