Increase of Turks seeking asylum from Erdogan's persecutions in Greece

Many of them are wealthy people who buy houses in Athens, aiming to stay in Greece and be granted asylum, until the situation in the neighboring country improves. At present, there are 6,500 Turks in Greece, most of them "dissident" Guilenists. According to data from the Greek Ministry of Migration Policy, 4,424 Turks claimed asylum in 2018, while 618 Turks claimed asylum in November alone, almost twice as many as those from 2013 to 2016.

More specifically, in 2013, in Greece, 17 Turkish citizens requested political asylum, in 2014 41 Turks, in 2015 Turks, in 2016 189 Turks, in2017 the number of Turks seeking asylum reached a record number of 1,826, while in 2018 the number of Turkish asylum seekers in Greece jumped to 4,425 people.

The trend is not expected to reverse in 2019 and the Turks in Greece expected to reach Greece are estimated to be more than 2018.