Turkish military police on Monday took into custody 35 Pakistani nationals seeking to make their way illegally into Greece, the Dogan news agency reported. The refugees were left at a coastal area of Seferihisar, near the Aegean Sea city of Izmir, at 5 a.m. (0200 GMT) Monday morning where they were told to wait for a boat that would take them to a Greek island. Dogan reported that they had each paid human-smugglers 1,500 dollars for the trip, according to DPA. The refugees were later arrested by gendarmes, military police responsible for security in rural areas, and given health checks. All 35 are expected to be returned to Pakistan. Each year police in Turkey intercept thousands of refugees seeking to illegally enter Greece, and from there into other European Union countries, but it is estimated that many more slip through.
