Security forces conducted anti-smuggling operations on Tuesday in five cities, leading to the capture of 18 alleged people-smugglers, mostly Syrian nationals.
The synchronized operations focused on the coastal city of İzmir, a traditional departure point for refugees seeking to cross the Aegean and reach the shores of Greece, and the Black Sea town of Samsun.
Based on intelligence gathered by the police, technical and physical searches were launched against 16 identified addresses in İzmir, Istanbul, the Black Sea province of Samsun, the Central Anatolian province of Aksaray and the southeastern province of Şanlıurfa, which were raided in simultaneous operations.
The police said most detained were Syrian nationals, and police seized encrypted documents, lists of migrants, digital storage, money-counting machines and foreign currency banknotes.
While the detainees were being brought to İzmir police headquarters, the police said the operations were ongoing and the number of detainees could increase.
The raids were the latest in a series of operations targeting human traffickers, who have been organizing illegal journeys for tens of thousands of mostly Syrian refugees who dream of reaching Europe.
Turkey has committed to crack down on smuggling operations as part of a deal with the EU aiming to stem the flow of illegal refugees from Turkey to Europe. Turkey has stepped up its measures to prevent the illegal passage by refugees to Europe across the Aegean Sea.
According to the deal, Turkey began taking back refugees who had reached Europe after March 20, and for every refugee Turkey takes back, the EU is set to take one refugee from refugee camps in Turkey, in an effort to reduce the illegal crossings, which has caused the deaths of around 4,000 refugees since the beginning of 2015.
Sixteen addresses were targeted in total, according to Anadolu Agency, in an operation spearheaded by Izmir police.
Human smuggling in Turkey, a transit route for migrants from Middle Eastern and Asian countries due to its location between Europe and Asia, has thrived recently. The war in southern neighbor Syria has made Turkey a favorite destination for migrants, who use it as a launch pad for journeys to Europe. Most migrants prefer sea routes, due to the proximity of the Turkish coast to Greek islands, while others prefer a land route from the northwest. Turkey plans to introduce heavier sentences for human smuggling. Human smuggling will be classified as an act of terrorism and organized crime. The move may help Turkey's crackdown against smugglers, which has seen the detention of hundreds of people accused of organizing illegal crossings across the Aegean Sea between Turkey and Greece since last year.