Update - Some 285 İrregular Migrants Held İn Western Turkey

At least 285 irregular migrants were held across Turkey, security sources said on Tuesday.



In the Aegean Izmir province, 58 migrants -- including women and children -- were held in a rubber boat off the coast of Dikili, said a security source who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media.



At least 42 Syrians, eight Iraqis and eight Palestinians were referred to provincial migration offices.



Separately, 16 others were held from a rubber boat off the coast of Cesme, Izmir while trying to reach Greece.



Some 194 irregular migrants were rounded up by gendarmerie forces in the northwestern Edirne province, bordering Bulgaria and Greece.



In a separate operation in the same province, police held six irregular migrants during regular patrols.



Two human smugglers were arrested in the operation.



In another northwestern province Tekirdag, police nabbed 11 irregular migrants -- all Pakistani nationals -- during regular patrols.



Four people were arrested for alleged human smuggling.



Turkey has been a main route for irregular migrants trying to cross into Europe, especially since 2011 when the Syrian civil war began.



More than 265,000 irregular migrants were held in Turkey in 2018, according to the Interior Ministry. -