Türkiye on Sunday pulled 28 irregular migrants out of its territorial waters in the Aegean Sea after the Greek forces pushed them back.

In the first of two successful rescue operations off the country's Aegean shores, the Turkish Coast Guard Command said on its website that 14 migrants, including four children, were saved from a rubber boat off the district of Dikili in Izmir province.

The other operation took place off the coast of Datça district in the province of Muğla, resulting in the rescue of an additional 14 migrants, among them seven children, from a lifeboat.

All migrants were transferred to the Provincial Directorate of Migration Management for further processing.

Türkiye has been a key transit point for asylum seekers aiming to cross into Europe to start new lives, especially those fleeing war and persecution.

Every year, hundreds of thousands of migrants flee civil conflict or economic hardship in their home countries with the hope of reaching Europe via Türkiye.

Some migrants make dangerous journeys over land or sea with the assistance of smugglers, who often abandon them, especially during sea journeys, after receiving thousands of dollars from each migrant. Turkish security forces stop others before crossing the border into Europe.

The latest statistics, between 2010 and 2023, show Türkiye rescued 184,175 irregular migrants from its seas after they put their lives in danger with the hope of reaching Europe. Some 923 migrants, on the other hand, ended up dead on perilous journeys in the same period, while 503 people remain unaccounted for after their boats sank.

While the number of migrants arriving in other countries fell this year, the EU border protection agency Frontex reports that Greece has seen an increase of almost 40% compared to last year. It says around 37,000 people have arrived in Greece since the beginning of 2024.

However, around 30,000 of those irregular arrivals traveled by boat from the west coast of Türkiye to the Greek islands in the eastern Aegean rather than crossing the land border between the two countries.

Athens built a 40-kilometer steel barrier on the land border between Türkiye and Greece to prevent irregular migration, and the construction process was completed in August 2021.

Ankara and global rights groups have repeatedly condemned Greece’s illegal practice, saying it violates humanitarian values and international law by endangering the lives of vulnerable migrants, including women and children.