Refugees foiled after wrapping themselves in aluminium in a bid to smuggle themselves

Seven Iraqi migrants were caught wrapped up in aluminum foil in a bid to go undetected through x-ray detectors at an Turkish port as they tried to smuggle themselves to Europe.

Reuters reported they were refugees on a truck trying to head to Italy when they were caught on Wednesday.

The men were in a shipping container on the truck which was meant to be carrying car parts, according to local reports.

When the container went through the x-ray scanner in Istanbul, customs officials noticed an unusual weight. When they looked inside, the officials saw feet and arms peeking out of aluminum foil.

The group were reportedly detained along with the driver of the truck.

Video posted on the Hurriyet news website shows the group at the back of the truck sitting behind green boxes.

Some of the men were holding pieces of aluminum to their heads to obscure their faces with holes over their noses and mouths.

A man off screen tells the group to “stand up, stand up, stand up” and repeatedly urges them to come to him.

They eventually take off the foil and climb over the boxes and out of the truck.

Turkey, which borders Iraq and Syria, has become a transit hub for refugees trying to get to Europe.

The UN’s refugee agency says there are 143, 000 “people of concern” from Iraq and 3.5 million from Syria living in Turkey.

The mood towards refugees in the country has shifted and their presence has become a hot-button issue as Turkey heads towards an election on June 24 with candidates telling supporters they want Syrians to go home.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, campaigning for re-election, said on Tuesday that 200, 000 Syrians went back to areas of Syria that were controlled by Turkey.

“They continue to return. Why? Because it is their own land, we open the path, they return,” he told a rally.