Turkish Migration Department Denies Transferring 600,000 Syrians to Istanbul

Syrian survivors of the earthquake at a crossing point on the Turkish-Syrian border. (EPA)
Syrian survivors of the earthquake at a crossing point on the Turkish-Syrian border. (EPA)
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Turkish Migration Department Denies Transferring 600,000 Syrians to Istanbul

Syrian survivors of the earthquake at a crossing point on the Turkish-Syrian border. (EPA)
Syrian survivors of the earthquake at a crossing point on the Turkish-Syrian border. (EPA)

The Turkish Migration Management denied allegations that 600,000 Syrians were transferred from earthquake-stricken regions in the country’s south, east and southeast to Istanbul.

It also denied that the cost of their transport was covered by official authorities, while Turkish citizens had to pay for public transportation.

It stressed that these claims, which were made during a morning show, were unfounded and irresponsible and aimed at incitement and provocation and creating a negative perception of foreigners in Türkiye.

It rejected claims against state institutions and ngos that have been working to aid the victims of the earthquake, stressing that the Migration Management was working around the clock to help those in need.

Moreover, it said it rejects false allegations that put the Department workers under suspicion simply because they are carrying out their responsibilities.

The media, it urged, should turn to official institutions to obtain verified information.

On Wednesday, head of the Victory Party Umit Ozdag, who is known for his opposition to Syrians and foreigners in Türkiye, alleged during an interview with Turkish Fox channel that the Migration Management had exempted Syrians from paying for their transportation.

He claimed that sources from the Management had informed him that 600,000 Syrians were allowed to move to Istanbul, while Turkish citizens remains in stricken region.

He did not reveal his sources, but identified one as an academic whose students work at the Migration Management.

Moreover, Ozdag said his party was not satisfied with the government’s policy towards the Syrians. He added that if ballot boxes were placed at the Management, 84 percent of its workers would vote in favor of his party.

Ozdag had previously claimed that Syrians were robbing shops and homes in the earthquake-stricken region. His allegations were refuted.

A public prosecutor in Türkiye filed a lawsuit against Ozdag after he posted a picture of a young man carrying a phone in the earthquake areas, claiming he was a Syrian who had stolen phones from destroyed houses.

The young man later appeared on local media and showed his Turkish identity, explaining that he was a volunteer worker. He filed an official complaint against Ozdag for defaming him on social media.

Meanwhile, the Syrian-Turkish Committee previously announced that the Migration Management canceled the travel permits of Syrians holding a temporary card in the states hit by the earthquake for a specified period.

The permits allow them to visit various states except for Istanbul. They must obtain 90-day permits from the Migration Management after arriving in states other than the ones in which they are registered.

Syrians were also required to specify why they visited other states and prove they had relatives there. Migrants traveling between states without obtaining permission will have to pay fines and might face the possibility of having their permits revoked.

More than 500,000 Syrians live in Istanbul, out of about 3.6 million in Türkiye.

Turkish authorities also allowed Syrians in quake-stricken areas to travel to Syria for a month, but many decided not to return to Türkiye.

Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said more than 42,000 Syrians have returned to their country after the earthquake.



Death Toll from Catastrophic Flooding in Texas over the July Fourth Weekend Surpasses 100

 A portion of Highway 1340 is covered by the Guadalupe River in the aftermath of deadly flooding in Kerr County, Texas, US, July 7, 2025. (Reuters)
A portion of Highway 1340 is covered by the Guadalupe River in the aftermath of deadly flooding in Kerr County, Texas, US, July 7, 2025. (Reuters)
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Death Toll from Catastrophic Flooding in Texas over the July Fourth Weekend Surpasses 100

 A portion of Highway 1340 is covered by the Guadalupe River in the aftermath of deadly flooding in Kerr County, Texas, US, July 7, 2025. (Reuters)
A portion of Highway 1340 is covered by the Guadalupe River in the aftermath of deadly flooding in Kerr County, Texas, US, July 7, 2025. (Reuters)

The death toll from catastrophic flooding in Texas over the July Fourth weekend surpassed 100 on Monday as search-and-rescue teams continued to wade into swollen rivers and use heavy equipment to untangle trees as part of the massive search for missing people.

Authorities overseeing the search for flood victims said they will wait to address questions about weather warnings and why some summer camps did not evacuate ahead of the flooding that killed at least 104.

The officials spoke only hours after the operators of Camp Mystic, a century-old all-girls Christian summer camp in the Texas Hill Country, announced that they lost 27 campers and counselors to the floodwaters. Kerr County officials said 10 campers and one counselor were still unaccounted for Monday.

Searchers have found the bodies of 84 people, including 28 children, in the county home to Camp Mystic and several other summer camps, officials said.

With additional rain on the way, more flooding still threatened saturated parts of central Texas. Authorities said the death toll was sure to rise.

The raging flash floods, among the nation’s worst in decades, slammed into camps and homes along the edge of the Guadalupe River before daybreak Friday, pulling sleeping people out of their cabins, tents and trailers and dragging them for miles past floating tree trunks and cars. Some survivors were found clinging to trees.

Piles of twisted trees sprinkled with mattresses, refrigerators and coolers littered the riverbanks Monday. The debris included reminders of what drew so many to the campgrounds and cabins in the Hill Country — a volleyball, canoes and a family portrait.

Nineteen deaths were reported in Travis, Burnet, Kendall, Tom Green and Williamson counties, local officials said.

Among those confirmed dead were 8-year-old sisters from Dallas who were at Camp Mystic and a former soccer coach and his wife who were staying at a riverfront home. Their daughters were still missing.

Calls for finding why warnings weren't heard

Authorities vowed that one of the next steps would be investigating whether enough warnings were issued and why some camps did not evacuate or move to higher ground in a place long vulnerable to flooding that some local residents refer to as “flash flood alley.”

That will include a review of how weather warnings were sent out and received. One of the challenges is that many camps and cabins are in places with poor cellphone service, Kerrville City Manager Dalton Rice said.

“We definitely want to dive in and look at all those things,” he said. “We’re looking forward to doing that once we can get the search and rescue complete.”

Some camps were aware of the dangers and monitoring the weather. At least one moved several hundred campers to higher ground before the floods.

Sen. Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican, said recent government spending cuts to the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the National Weather Service did not delay any warnings.

“There’s a time to have political fights, there’s a time to disagree. This is not that time,” Cruz said. “There will be a time to find out what could been done differently. My hope is in time we learn some lessons to implement the next time there is a flood.”

The weather service first advised of potential flooding on Thursday and then sent out a series of flash flood warnings in the early hours of Friday before issuing flash flood emergencies — a rare step that alerts the public to imminent danger.

Authorities and elected officials have said they did not expect such an intense downpour, the equivalent of months of rain. Some residents said they never received any warnings.

President Donald Trump, who signed a major disaster declaration for Kerr County and plans to visit the area, said Sunday that he does not plan to rehire any of the federal meteorologists who were fired this year.

“This was a thing that happened in seconds. Nobody expected it,” the president said.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said local and federal weather services provided sufficient warnings.

“That was an act of God. It’s not the administration’s fault that the flood hit when it did, but there were early and consistent warnings,” Leavitt said.

More than three dozen people were unaccounted for across the state and more could be missing, Gov. Greg Abbott said Sunday.

Search-and-rescue crews at one staging area said Monday that more than 1,000 volunteers had been directed to Kerr County.

Little time to escape floods

Reagan Brown said his parents, in their 80s, managed to escape uphill as water inundated their home in the town of Hunt. When the couple learned that their 92-year-old neighbor was trapped in her attic, they went back and rescued her.

“Then they were able to reach their tool shed up higher ground, and neighbors throughout the early morning began to show up at their tool shed, and they all rode it out together,” Brown said.

Elizabeth Lester, a mother of children who were at Camp Mystic and nearby Camp La Junta during the flood, said her young son had to swim out his cabin window to escape. Her daughter fled up the hillside as floodwaters whipped against her legs.