ADDS REPORT, CHANGES HEADLINE, LEDE
By Metin Aydemir, Ali Korkmaz and Gokhan Duzyol
IZMIR/AYDIN/MUGLA, Türkiye (AA) - The Turkish Coast Guard rescued 265 irregular migrants in the Aegean Sea after Greek authorities pushed them back into Türkiye's territorial waters, according to a statement Wednesday.
Coast guard units saved 33 irregular migrants from a rubber boat off the districts of Seferihisar and Cesme in Izmir province, while 43 were rescued off the Kusadasi and Didim districts in Aydin province, said the Coast Guard.
In the vicinity of Datca district in Mugla, 70 irregular migrants on two rubber boats, pushed into Turkish territorial waters by Greece, were rescued.
Later, 119 irregular migrants on makeshift rafts and rubber boats were again pushed back into Turkish territorial waters by Greece.
The migrants were transported to the provincial migration departments.
Türkiye and global rights groups have repeatedly condemned Greece's illegal practice of pushing back asylum seekers, saying it violates humanitarian values and international law by endangering the lives of vulnerable migrants, including women and children.