Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya on Friday announced on X that from April 6 to April 10, Turkey’s security forces captured 1,177 “irregular” migrants in over 30 provinces across the country.
“The captured irregular immigrants were handed over to the Provincial Directorate of Immigration Management and deportation procedures were initiated immediately,” said Yerlikaya.
No information was provided regarding the nationality of the migrants.
Turkey is a popular destination among migrants from the Middle East and several central and southern Asian countries to relocate to or use as a transit destination to reach Europe.
Roughly 3.2 million Syrian refugees who fled war are currently residing in Turkey and have been granted temporary protection status, according to the Turkish Presidency of Migration Management.
“As of 2023, there are 296,685 refugees and asylum-seekers in Türkiye, most of whom from Iraq, Afghanistan, the Islamic Republic of Iran, and Ukraine,” according to a January report by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) regarding the situation of migrants in Turkey.
Thousands of migrants brave the waters of the Aegean and the Mediterranean seas in boats in the hope of reaching the shores of Europe.
Turkey says it “has taken a certain position on irregular migration both by taking effective measures against irregular migration at national level and by actively participating in most of the activities regarding the identification of the problems, information exchange, joint struggle and cooperation on irregular migration at international level.”
In 2016, Turkey and the EU signed a multi-billion euro deal aimed at containing a wave of migration towards Europe. Under the deal, Ankara agreed to stop people from traveling irregularly to Europe and to accept asylum seekers rejected by the EU.
