UPDATES WITH ADDITIONAL MIGRANTS; CHANGES HEADLINE, DECK
By Muzaffer Cagliyaner and Cankut Tasdan
ANKARA/OSMANIYE, Turkey (AA) – At least 45 irregular migrants were held in various parts of Turkey on Sunday, security sources said.
Five irregular migrants, all Syrian nationals, were held in Turkey’s southern Osmaniye province on Sunday, a security source said.
Police teams stopped a minibus at a checkpoint on the Tarsus-Adana-Gaziantep Highway and found the migrants, who had entered the country illegally, said the source on the condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media.
The migrants were taken to the provincial migration office after routine procedures.
The irregular migrants had reportedly paid $1,000 to human traffickers to reach the country through the southeastern border provinces of Gaziantep and Sanliurfa.
The minibus driver was also detained, the source added.
Separately, in the capital Ankara, security teams found 40 irregular migrants in a minibus designed to carry only 17 people.
The migrants, who had illegally crossed into the country from Iran, were aiming to cross into Europe, said security sources, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Out of the 40 migrants, 38 were Afghan nationals and two were Pakistani.
The migrants had neither passports not identification cards, and had apparently been without food or water for days. Four suspects were arrested for human trafficking.
The migrants are set to be deported following routine procedures.
Turkey has been a key transit point for asylum seekers who want to cross into Europe to start new lives, especially those fleeing war and persecution.
It hosts nearly 4 million refugees, including more than 3.6 million Syrians, the most for any country in the world.
*Writing by Merve Aydogan in Ankara
