Number of refugees deported by Turkey rises by 70 percent in 2022, official data shows

A removal center in İstanbul.

Turkey has deported 28,581 "irregular migrants" so far this year, according to the figures released by the Presidency of Migration Management, an agency affiliated with the Ministry of Interior.

Compared to the same period last year, the number of deported refugees rose by 70 percent, figures show.

The deported people were from "Afghanistan, Pakistan and other countries," said the agency.

Also, 153,088 refugees have been prevented from entering the country so far in 2022, and some 2.6 million have been prevented since 2016.

The number of "irregular migrants" caught in Turkey this year is 74,516, according to the figures. Nearly 10,000 of them were caught during the "Peace Practices for Combating Irregular Migration," which are caused simultaneously in all 81 provinces of Turkey every month, said the agency.

Refugees from 94 countries

Currently, deportation procedures for 18,801 people from 94 countries are underway at the removal centers. Some 10,763 of them are from Afghanistan, 2,740 are from Pakistan, 1,776 are from Syria and 3,552 are from other countries.

So far this year, Turkey has deported 4,982 people from Pakistan, according to the agency.

The number of all foreigners residing in Turkey is five and a half million, the ministry announced earlier this month. More than 3.7 million of them are from Syria.

Amid the increasing anti-refugee sentiment, the opposition has been pressing the government to send refugees back. While the government defends its migration policies, it has promised to reduce the number of refugees in the country to "reasonable levels." (VK)