Turkey nabs over 2,500 irregular migrants past week

Nearly 2,530 irregular migrants were arrested across Turkey over the last week, according to data compiled by Anadolu Agency from security sources.

Turkish gendarmerie forces held 962 of migrants in the northwestern Edirne province, which borders Greece and Bulgaria.

According to local sources in Edirne, Greece has stepped up efforts to send irregular migrants to Turkey in violation of the Geneva Conventions, the European Convention on Human Rights and the UN Convention Against Torture.

In the coastal western cities of Mugla, Canakkale, Izmir and Aydin, the Turkish Coast Guard and gendarmerie forces rounded up more than 1,260 migrants.

In the northwestern provinces of Kirklareli, Yalova and Tekirdag, a total of 98 migrants were held by gendarmerie forces.

Also, 84 irregular migrants, sailing from Canakkale, were held by the cost guard.

A total of 122 irregular migrants were held in the central Nigde, eastern Elazig and Van, and southeastern Kilis provinces.

The migrants included Pakistani, Congolese, Syrian, Iraqi, Iranian, Afghan, Moroccan, Egyptian, Bangladeshi, Somali, Yemeni, Palestinian, Malian, Gabonese, Senegalese, Burundian, Cameroonian, Angolan, Libyan, Lebanese and South African nationals.

All of the migrants held during the week were either taken to hospitals for medical treatment or transferred to provincial migration offices.

Turkey has been a key transit point for irregular migrants aiming to cross to Europe to start new lives, especially those fleeing war and persecution.