Iraq enhances coordination with international partners in fight against drug trafficking

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq’s ministry of interior on Monday announced the establishment of three new international contact points with Germany, Australia, and Nigeria, bringing the total number of cross-border coordination channels in the fight against drug trafficking to 36.

“We are actively cooperating with other nations to curb drug-related crimes,” Major General Miqdad Miri, spokesperson for the federal interior ministry, said during a press conference reported by Iraqi state media.

Presenting statistics for the first quarter of this year, Miri said authorities seized 1,307 kilograms of narcotic substances and worked with the judiciary to issue 2,020 rulings, including 34 death sentences and 137 life sentences.

He added that the number of arrests has reached 4,260 so far this year.

By comparison, in the first quarter of last year, Iraqi security forces confiscated two tons and 166 kilograms of narcotics, arrested 3,006 individuals, and secured 973 convictions, according to data from the country’s anti-drug agency.

Iraq remains a major destination and transit route for drug trafficking.

Saad Maan, head of Iraq’s Security Media Cell, told Rudaw in February 2025 that drug trafficking is “the most widespread crime” in the country.

“We have dismantled 193 drug trafficking networks, 35 of which were international,” Miri said, adding that the operations included 10 conducted outside Iraq, notably in Syria and Kuwait.

Baghdad has also stepped up coordination with neighboring Syria this year. Joint operations led to the seizure of 500,000 Captagon pills - a powerful amphetamine - on Sunday, as well as 400,000 pills in February.

Miri further noted that there are currently 1,806 inmates in detention facilities, while 8,183 individuals have been admitted to rehabilitation centers. Of those, 6,729 have fully recovered - a milestone achievement for the ministry, he said.

For his part, Lieutenant General Ahmed al-Zerkani, director general of Baghdad’s anti-drug police, said Iraq ranks “first internationally in terms of intelligence operations,” followed by the United Arab Emirates.

He added that Iraq is increasingly recognized as a leading country in conducting successful cross-border anti-narcotics operations.

A report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crimes (UNODC) described Iraq as a “conduit for the flow of drugs” between southwest Asia, the Arab peninsula, and Europe while also noting a surge in Captagon trafficking from Syria that contributed to growing consumption within the country.