site.btaTurkish Authorities Report Sharp Drop in Movement of Illegal Migrants in Edirne Region

The movement of illegal migrants in the region of the Turkish border city of Edirne has recorded a significant decline in 2023, the Demirören News Agency said on Friday.

Issues of illegal migration, security, and preservation of public order in the city in the past year 2023 were discussed at a meeting of Edirne Governor Yunus Sezer with responsible representatives of local authorities.

"Very serious measures have been taken in the fight against illegal migration. Nearly 50 traffic control points have been established. Helicopters and drones are tracking mobility by land and sea. As a result of the coordinated action of the police, gendarmerie, traffic police, and border security and customs forces, which are on 24-hour duty, a 95% drop in the movement of illegal migrants was achieved in 2023 compared with the previous year. Great struggle is being waged, I thank everyone individually for their efforts in the fight against illegal migration," the governor said.

He stressed that the fight against organised crime groups and the illegal trafficking of human beings remains a major task in the activities of law enforcement bodies. In 2023, nine organised groups were dismantled. Arrests and prosecutions were taken against 3,892 people wanted for organised crime and 473 people were arrested for illegal trafficking in human beings. Criminal action was taken against 1,567 persons for drug smuggling and distribution.

"There are four major border and customs posts in the Edirne Region. They are extremely busy. In 2023, 5,247,667 vehicles passed through them and the number of people who passed in both directions was nearly 15 million, about 10% more compared to the previous year. Our customs officers prevented 574 cases of smuggling in which smuggled goods worth TRY 2,041,000,000 were confiscated, a 141% increase compared to the previous year," the governor noted.