The number of asylum applications lodged by Turkish nationals in Germany stood at 4,969 in the first six months of the year, an increase of 15 percent over the 4,329 applications made in the first half of 2018, Deutsche Welle Turkish service reported on Thursday.
According to figures provided by the country’s Federal Ministry of the Interior, Building and Community (BMI), Turkey ranked fifth among nationalities with the highest number of applications, following Syria, Iraq, Nigeria and Afghanistan.
In June Turkey ranked third with 751 applications.
Since a failed coup in 2016 that led to a widespread crackdown on dissent by the Turkish government, the number of Turkish nationals seeking asylum in Germany and other Western European countries has seen a significant increase.
According to German Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) statistics, the number of asylum applications filed by Turkish citizens stood at 5,742 in 2016, 8,483 in 2017 and 10,655 in 2018.