Four Iranian narcotics suspects arrested in Erbil

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) – Four suspected Iranian drug dealers were caught in Erbil on Tuesday, according to the Kurdistan Region Security Council.

According to Alan Zandi, a journalist at Kurdistan24, the drug dealers had prepared drugs in the form of capsules. After their arrests, the narcotics were seized.

The drug dealers had swallowed capsules filled with methamphetamine, and some of the drugs were hidden in their bodies through their lower digestive tracts.

Also known as “crystal meth,” methamphetamine is a synthetic stimulant with an appearance resembling bluish-white glass. It can cause severe complications such as hallucinations, psychosis, anxiety, violent anger, kidney failure, schizophrenia, and memory loss, among other serious detrimental disorders.

The Kurdistan Region has ramped up arrest and confiscation efforts in a bid in recent years to crack down on the spread of narcotics.

Drug trafficking and use have seen a surge in Iraq, particularly in recent decades, as its borders with neighboring Syria and Iran have made the country a hotbed for the transit and sale of narcotics. The two countries have frequently been accused by regional powers of harboring drug manufacturing enterprises and staking interests in illicit profits.

From its borders, smugglers cleverly disguise their contraband to bypass security checkpoints and enter the Kurdistan Region.

The Kurdistan Regional Government in mid-October of 2023 held a Conference on Combating Drugs and Psychotropic Substances in the presence of several faith community leaders, security officials, and regional and Western diplomats to discuss the issue.

Editing by Dastan Muwaffaq