A total of 5786 Turkish citizens have sought asylum in neighbouring Greece in the 27 months following Turkey’s July 2016, coup attempt, independent news site Diken reported, citing the Greek Ministry of Migration Policy.

Pointing to an increase in the number of Turkish asylum seekers, the Greek ministry said 706 Turkish citizens applied for asylum in October alone, while 3807 Turks who fled to Greece sought asylum there between January-October of this year.

Migration from Turkey to Greece has intensified since 2016 due to Turkish government’s purge against political opponents in the wake of a failed coup. Most of the Turkish nationals seeking asylum in Greece are devotees of the Gülen movement, a religious group the Turkish government accuses of orchestrating the coup attempt on July 15, 2016.

The number of Turkish refugees seeking asylum in Greece for the whole of 2017 was 1826, the ministry said.

Prior to the July 2016 coup attempt, 17 Turkish citizens applied for asylum in Greece in 2013; 41 in 2014; 42 in 2015 and 189 in 2016.

Turkish officials have accused Greece of becoming a “haven” for coup plotters after resisting Turkish demands for the extradition of eight Turkish servicemen accused of links to the July 2016 coup attempt from Greece.

Source: ahvalnews