Three groups of migrants were saved as they attempted to cross from Turkey to the Greek island of Lesbos, the Turkish Coast Guard said yesterday. The 132 migrants from Syria, Angola, Afghanistan, Eritrea, Senegal, Togo and Burkina Faso were pulled from rubber dinghies in the Aegean Sea Tuesday. They are believed to have set off from beaches near the town of Dikili, which lies 24 kilometers (15 miles) across the sea from Lesbos.
The country is both a transit and final destination for migrants, particularly from Syria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran, Iraq, Congo, Bangladesh, Somalia and the Palestinian territories. In recent years, hundreds of thousands of people have tried to make the short but perilous journey across the Aegean Sea to reach Northern and Western Europe. Although the Turkish Coast Guard has rescued thousands of people, a countless number of refugees have died trying to undertake the treacherous voyage. Since the beginning of 2017, at least 52 people have lost their lives in the dangerous sea journeys.
In March 2016, Turkey and the EU signed a deal to discourage irregular migration through the Aegean Sea by taking stricter measures against human traffickers and improving the conditions of some 3 million Syrian refugees in Turkey. Since then, the number of refugees detained crossing the Aegean Sea between Turkey and Greece has fallen 85 percent, according to the Turkish Coast Guard. Still, a small number of migrants continue to risk their lives on a daily basis to reach Greece, while EU countries bicker over quotas on the number of migrants each supposedly should take and the burden of hosting refugees.
On Turkey's northwest border with Greece, 46 foreigners were prevented from crossing illegally yesterday, a security official said. People from Bangladesh, Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan and Morocco were held in Meric, a district of Edirne province, which is separated from Greek territory by the Meric river. In one minibus, dinghies and lifejackets were found. The driver was arrested. Another three suspected people smugglers were arrested in two other incidents in the district.