Dozens of irregular migrants rescued off Aegean coast-- Turkish coast guard

Turkish Coast Guard units rescued 190 irregular migrants who had been pushed back by Greek authorities in Turkey's territorial waters.

Ekleme: 03.01.2023 10:11:38 / Güncelleme: 03.01.2023 10:11:38 / English News / İzmir Haberleri
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Turkish Coast Guard Command said that coast guard teams rescued the asylum seekers from rubber boats off the coast of Turkey’s western Balıkesir, Çanakkale, Muğla, and Izmir provinces.

According to the statement, Greek Coast Guard forces pushed the boats carrying irregular migrants back to Turkish territorial waters.

The rescued migrants were referred to the provincial migration offices, the statement said.

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 becoming a significant destination and transit country for those fleeing conflict, poverty, and disasters.

Turkey hosts one of the largest migrant and refugee populations in the world with 4 million refugees and asylum-seekers in the country, including over 3.7 million Syrians under temporary protection and over 330,000 international protection status holders and asylum-seekers of other nationalities.

According to the official reports, the Turkish coast guard intercepted 21,473 irregular migrants in 2021, up from 19368 in 2020. (ILKHA)