Bulgaria sends troops to border to halt migrants from Turkey

SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) — Bulgaria is deploying 350 troops and 40 army vehicles along its southern border with Turkey to help border police deal with a growing migrant influx, the Defense Ministry said Tuesday.  The troops will conduct joint patrols along the 259-kilometer (161-mile) border with Turkey. They also will repair the partly damaged barbed-wire fence that was erected five years ago to prevent migrants, mainly from Syria, from illegally crossing the border from Turkey into the European Union nation. This year has seen a threefold increase of the number of detained illegal migrants coming into Bulgaria compared to the same period last year. The Balkan country of 7 million is located on a major route for migrants from the Mideast and Afghanistan to Europe.