Türkiye rescues 68 irregular migrants in Aegean Sea

By Ali Balli and Burak Akay

MUGLA/CANAKKALE, Türkiye (AA) - Türkiye rescued 68 irregular migrants in the Aegean Sea after Greek authorities pushed them back into Turkish territorial waters, the Turkish Coast Guard said Thursday.

The Coast Guard Command said units rescued the migrants from life rafts and rubber boats off the coast of Canakkale and Mugla provinces.

In the Ayvacik district in Canakkale, 36 irregular migrants of Afghan nationality were rescued from a rubber boat, according to a statement.

Separately, upon receiving information about a group of migrants on a life raft and a rubber boat off the coast of Bodrum district in Mugla, teams were sent to the area.

A total of 32 irregular migrants on the life raft and rubber boat, pushed back into Turkish territorial waters by Greek elements, were rescued.

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.