Turkish coastguard rescues 1,361 refugees in Aegean Sea

The Turkish Coast Guard rescued 1,361 refugees in the Aegean Sea over the past four days.

According to a statement issued by the Izmir province yesterday, the coastguard carried out 31 search and rescue operations between 9-12 October as part of “Operation Hope in the Aegean Sea”.

The statement added that, during these operations, the teams saved 428 refugees near the Ayvacik district, 346 refugees off the coast of Bodrum, 278 refugees near Izmir and 263 refugees in Aydin province as well as 46 other refugees off the coast of Balikesir.

The coastguard arrested one smuggler during the operations, the statement added.

The Turkish Coast Guard rescued as many as 59,934 refugees from in the Aegean Sea so far this year, and arrested 76 human traffickers as well as recovering the bodies of 120 refugees.