By Salih Baran</p> <p>EDIRNE, Turkey (AA) – Over 150 irregular migrants were held across Turkey on Thursday.</p> <p>In the western Edirne province, 117 migrants trying to illegally cross the border were held, according to security sources.</p> <p>The migrants were Algerian, Moroccan, Palestinian, Syrian, Bangladeshi and Pakistani nationals, said the sources, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media.</p> <p>Separately, in the central Kayseri province, police held 36 Afghan and Pakistani nationals who were traveling in a passenger bus.</p> <p>Four suspects were arrested in the incident, and two of them remanded in custody for alleged human smuggling, the sources added.</p> <p>Turkey has been the main route for refugees trying to cross to Europe, especially since the beginning of the civil war in Syria.</p> <p>Some 268,000 irregular migrants were held in Turkey in 2018, according to the Interior Ministry.
* Muzahim Zahid Tuzun and Ramazan Kaya contributed to the story from Kayseri.
