“4 human smugglers were arrested in the operations carried out by the police teams between 21-27 March 2022 in Van,” the provincial police department said in a statement.

2 derelict buildings, which were used for human trafficking, were demolished, the statement added.

Historically, Turkey has been a country of origin, transit, and destination for migrants and was a crossroads between Europe and Asia.

Recent regional events have contributed to Turkey increasingly becoming a major destination and transit country for those fleeing conflict, poverty, and disasters.

Turkey hosts one of the largest migrant and refugee populations in the world. (ILKHA)