Greek coast guard elements have pushed back a boat carrying 74 irregular migrants, 18 of whom are children, toward Turkish waters off western Muğla province’s Marmaris district.
IHA on Monday reported that Türkiye rescued the irregular migrants, while one migrant smuggler has been caught.
Many boatloads of migrants attempt to make the dangerous sea crossing to reach the Greek islands from the Turkish coast, hoping to make their way to prosperous European Union countries eventually.
Others attempt to enter Greece by crossing the Maritsa (Meriç) River that runs along the land border between the two countries.
While many make it to the EU, many others perish at sea or are pushed back by Greece into Turkish waters in violation of international law.
Athens’ illegal practice has been documented by Türkiye, international human rights groups and charities on many occasions, as well as in accounts of migrants intercepted in the Aegean or land borders.
Athens has strongly denied such pushbacks, arguing that its coast guard has saved hundreds of thousands of migrants from the Middle East and Africa crossing in small boats from Türkiye.
Greece says it needs to protect its borders, which are also those of the EU, from mass illegal immigration.
