Turkish police detain 506 illegal immigrants

Turkish police have detained 506 illegal immigrants in the country's biggest city of Istanbul, authorities announced.
Police forces have recently beefed up their controls against irregular refugees and detained 506 undocumented foreign nationals, including 239 Afghans, across the city on Wednesday, the Istanbul governor's office said in a statement on Thursday.

It added that the apprehended migrants were sent to a local repatriation centre for deportation procedures.

Istanbul Governor Ali Yerlikaya said 38,251 irregular migrants have been arrested across the city since the beginning of this year.

Turkey, a key transit point for asylum seekers on their way to Europe, has been lately witnessing an increased influx of Afghan refugees fleeing turmoil in their homeland.

The country hosts more than 4 million refugees, including 3.6 million Syrians, within its borders, mostly in Istanbul.-IANS