The bodies of 25 illegal migrants who apparently froze to death were discovered on the Turkish-Iraqi border with the melting of snow in the area, according to a report from the Van Bar Association Migration and Asylum Commission, the Hürriyet daily reported.
The bar association report showed that all the migrants were male and that 15 were from African countries. Only four of the bodies could be identified and repatriated, while 21 were buried in a pauper’s cemetery in Van.
The report said the area where the bodies were discovered is a geographically difficult region, that the bodies were under the snow for months and that some were savaged by wild animals.
The report added that there are also bodies on the Iranian side of the border.
Many people from Middle Eastern countries who flee war and persecution use Turkey as a transit route to make their way to Europe in the hope of establishing a new life there.
Most of them take risky journeys during which some perish on the way.