MUGLA, Türkiye

Türkiye rescued 39 irregular migrants in the Aegean Sea after Greek authorities pushed them back into Turkish territorial waters, the Turkish Coast Guard said Tuesday.

The migrants were rescued from a rubber boat off the district of Marmaris in Mugla province, said the Coast Guard Command.

They were taken to the provincial migration management directorate.

Türkiye and global rights groups have repeatedly condemned Greece's illegal practice of pushing back asylum seekers, saying it violates humanitarian values and international law by endangering the lives of vulnerable migrants, including women and children.

*Writing by Merve Berker