Iraq seizes 150 kg of narcotics, arrests three suspects

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraqi Security forces seized 150 kilograms of narcotics and 21,000 nerve medication pills in the country’s territorial waters, arresting three suspects following an international maritime tracking operation, the Interior Ministry said Saturday, amid an ongoing anti-narcotics crackdown.

In a statement, the ministry’s General Directorate of Narcotics Affairs said the operation “resulted in the seizure of 150 kilograms of various narcotics and 21,000 Lyrica pills, in addition to two boats."

"After investigating the information and conducting intelligence tracking, the executing force was able to detect and seize a boat with two Iraqi suspects on board," the directorate said, noting that "subsequent follow-up operations led to the identification and seizure of a second boat, along with a foreign suspect," bringing the total number of individuals detained during the mission to three.

Iraq remains both a destination and a transit route for narcotics. A report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime describes the country as a “conduit” for drug flows between Southwest Asia, the Arabian Peninsula, and Europe, while highlighting a surge in Captagon trafficking from Syria and rising domestic consumption.

To counter the trade, operations led by the General Directorate for Narcotics Affairs have scaled up to involve international coordination, establishing 36 liaison channels with foreign counterparts to strengthen intelligence sharing and field cooperation.

The directorate emphasized on Saturday that "this operation reflects the expanding scope of intelligence work to pursue drug trafficking networks and cut off land and sea smuggling routes wherever they may be."

The operation in the Gulf followed a tip from a neighboring country about suspicious maritime activity, the directorate said, noting it worked alongside military intelligence and naval forces.

In late August, the directorate announced that 4,644 individuals have been sentenced for drug-related crimes since the start of the year, including 69 death sentences and 267 life sentences. Authorities dismantled 304 local and 54 international networks during the campaigns, while carrying out 21 external operations, establishing six contact points, and issuing 43 international arrest warrants.

According to official figures, the Iraqi judiciary handed down around 300 death sentences against major drug traffickers and network leaders, as well as 1,147 life imprisonment sentences - defined as 20 years under Iraqi law - between late 2022 and late 2025, accounting for the majority of the 2,318 total sentences issued in drug cases during that period.

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