34 undocumented Afghan migrants caught off NW Turkish coast

Turkish coast guards intercepted a rubber boat carrying 34 undocumented Afghan migrants off the coast of Ayvacik district in the northwestern province of Canakkale, local media reported.

Turkey is a major route for thousands of Afghan refugees who are fleeing to Europe in the hope of escaping widespread human rights abuses by the Taliban and increasing poverty in their homeland.

Turkey has detained and deported thousands of Afghan refugees to Afghanistan this year, with the government reporting that in the first six months alone, 42,685 undocumented immigrants were apprehended and deported from various cities in the country.