By Mustafa Yildirim and Birol Gungordu
IZMIR/CANAKKALE, Turkey (AA) – At least 70 irregular migrants were held in western Turkey, security sources said on Wednesday.
In Turkey’s Aegean province of Izmir, 42 irregular migrants — including women and children — were held in Seferihisar district, said a security source, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media.
The migrants — all Pakistani nationals — were trying to cross to Greece via Greek islands in a sailing boat, the source added.
Also in northwestern Canakkale province, 28 migrants — including Afghan women and children — were held in security patrols in Ezine district.
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 Syria’s civil war began.
