ISTANBUL - Turkish police captured 63 illegal immigrants in an operation in Sisli town of Istanbul, sources said on Saturday.
Acting on a tip-off that foreigners were sheltering in a construction in Ferikoy district, police staged an operation and detained 63 Pakistani and Bangladeshi people.
These foreigners told police that they entered Turkey illegally and wanted to sneak into European countries via Turkey.
Turkish police are searching for three people, including a Turk and two foreigners, who helped the illegal immigrants to enter Turkey.
Turkey is a route of illegal migration due to its geographical location lying between Asia and Europe like a bridge with its rough mountainous eastern and southeastern borders difficult to control. Illegal immigrants from Middle Eastern, Asian and Far Eastern countries generally use this route to sneak into European countries.
In the West, northwestern Edirne province and some other Aegean provinces are routes for illegal immigrants to cross the border. Particularly Meric River, a natural border between Turkey and Greece, and Aegean provinces which are close to Greek Islands in the Aegean Sea are used by illegal immigrants to go to European countries.
In recent years, there has been a considerable increase in the number of illegal immigrants who were caught by the Turkish security forces who stepped up security measures against illegal migration.
(BRC) 23.05.2004