ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Kurdistan Region’s security agency announced on Wednesday that it seized more than 670 kilograms of narcotic substances and arrested dozens of drug traffickers over a seven-month period.
According to the Kurdish Security Agency (KRSA), the anti-narcotics campaign ran from June 1 to December 23 and involved coordinated efforts by security forces across the Kurdistan Region. The detainees included local, foreign, and international drug traffickers.
In total, 671.364 kilograms of narcotics were confiscated during the campaign.
The seized substances included crystal meth, marijuana, Captagon pills, heroin, hashish, cocaine, tiliak, ephedrine, and tramadol pills, the statement read.
Drug trafficking and drug use have risen sharply in the Kurdistan Region and across Iraq since the fall of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein in 2003. Regional officials have repeatedly warned of the growing spread of narcotics and their social impact.
Of nearly 6,000 prisoners currently held in the Kurdistan Region, more than 1,500 are incarcerated on drug-related charges - accounting for roughly one-fifth of the total prison population. More than 800 of those inmates are drug dealers or traffickers, according to data obtained by Rudaw from government sources.
The Kurdistan Region and Iraq - particularly areas along their borders with Iran, Turkey, and Syria - are considered major transit routes for illicit drugs destined for European markets.
In October 2023, Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani said the government was intensifying efforts to combat drug trafficking, urging both local and international cooperation to address what he described as an “endemic” problem.
In July 2024, a research study published by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Regional Office reported that Iraq, including the Kurdistan Region, has experienced a “sharp increase in the trafficking and use of Captagon over the past five years.”