More than 570 irregular migrants held across Turkiye

ISTANBUL/KIRKLARELI/SIIRT/ANKARA/CANAKKALE/MUGLA, Turkiye

Hundreds of irregular migrants were held across Turkiye on Friday, according to local authorities.

Police caught 425 irregular migrants in simultaneous operations targeting 52 separate locations in Istanbul, among them 195 Pakistanis and 230 Afghans.

Seventeen others were held in the northwestern Kirklareli province bordering Bulgaria. The group, including Afghans and Syrians, was referred to the provincial migration office.

In the capital Ankara, 45 Afghans who entered Turkiye illegally were held by police.

Notably, Turkish Coast Guard units rescued 54 migrants, including 27 pushed back to the country's territorial waters by Greek elements, off the western Canakkale and Mugla provinces.

Police units in the eastern Siirt province caught 31 Afghan irregular migrants after the vehicle carrying them defied a warning to stop.

All of the irregular migrants were referred to local migration offices for due process.

Turkiye has deported over 21,000 irregular migrants this year, the country's Interior Ministry announced on Friday. More than 451,000 were denied entry into the country last year, whereas 127,256 were barred so far in 2022.

Turkiye has been a key transit point for asylum seekers aiming to cross into Europe to start new lives, especially those fleeing war and persecution.

Turkiye is hosting 4 million refugees, more than any other country in the world.

*Writing by Ali Murat Alhas in Ankara