Kurdistan Region arrested over 1,700 for drug-related crimes in 2019
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) - The Kurdistan Regional Government announced on Friday that, in 2019, security forces in the autonomous region had arrested 1,702 individuals that had been charged with the trafficking or possession of illegal drugs.
The Kurdistan Region’s Drug Combatting Directorate said in a statement that 530 of those detained had already been convicted and imprisoned, while the remaining are still awaiting trial. It did not state that any of them had been found innocent of crimes they were arrested for.
The sale and consumption of any narcotics or controlled medications are strictly forbidden in the Kurdistan Region and Iraq.
The directorate also revealed they had confiscated 230 kilograms of various narcotics in 2019 and had also seized over 9,215 "opium pills."
In addition, the directorate stated it had also confiscated counterfeit money in the autonomous Kurdistan Region totaling 2,405,000 Iraqi dinars and $15,000 in fake US currency.
A statement from the directorate earlier in 2019 mentioned that the most commonly trafficked drug security forces intercept is heroin. The rest include methamphetamine, "crystal." opium, hashish, and tablets of tramadol, an addictive pain medication.
On Monday, Asayish security forces detained two Iranian nationals in Erbil who were attempting to smuggle drugs into the country. According to a statement, the suspects had disguised the narcotics as Christmas gifts and were trying to traffic them to Canada.
Read More: Kurdistan security arrest 2 Iranians smuggling drugs as Christmas gifts
Kurdish and Iraqi authorities often intercept shipments of drugs passing through Iraq and the Kurdistan Region, mainly in the provinces of Basra, Diyala, Erbil, and Sulaimani. Most of it is smuggled into the country through its porous border with Iran, on its way to Turkey, Syria, and ultimately Europe and North America.
Local activists and authorities have also warned of the rise in drug consumption and trafficking within the country itself.
Editing by John J. Catherine