site.btaOver 1,000 Illegal Migrants Caught in Turkiye in First Five Days of Eid al-Fitr Holidays

A total of 1,177 illegal migrants were intercepted in Turkiye as part of Operation Shield-19 during the first five days of the Eid al-Fitr holidays, Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on the social network X, formerly known as Twitter. 

In connection with the 9-day holidays, police teams have been reinforced in Turkiye and the control of mobile checkpoints for migration and vehicle traffic has been stepped up in 30 of the country's major cities.

A total of 22,707 foreigners have had their identities checked. 1,177 were found to be illegal migrants. They were handed over to the migration offices in the respective districts for return.

The operations, codenamed Shield-19, were carried out on 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 April, in coordination with the local authorities and the migration management directorates, together with teams from the police, gendarmerie and coastguard.

A total of 162 mobile migration checkpoints have been set up in 30 major cities across Turkiye, with 130 in Istanbul alone, TRT Haber reported.

"We will continue operations against illegal migration and illegal transfer of migrants in all districts of the country without interruption. We will not allow traffickers to turn our country into a target and transit route for illegal migration," the Turkish Interior Minister said.