Suspect arrested
Kurdistan security seizes crystal meth hidden in books bound for UK.
SULAYMANIYAH — The Kurdistan Region’s Security Agency in Sulaymaniyah announced the seizure of 44 books infused with crystal methamphetamine and the arrest of a suspect planning to transport these books from the Penjwen district, near the Iranian border, to Sulaymaniyah and subsequently to the United Kingdom.
The agency’s spokesperson, Salam Abdul Khaleq, stated in a video released by the directorate, “The operation was based on prior intelligence and thorough investigations. The traffickers intended to use a new technique to transport the narcotics. However, due to the efficiency of our security forces and under judicial orders, a suspect was apprehended and all the books were confiscated.”
According to the video, the Anti-Narcotics Directorate examined the books in a forensic lab in Sulaymaniyah, where laboratory results confirmed the presence of crystal meth. The suspect has been detained and charged under Article 26 of the Anti-Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances Law, with investigations ongoing.
The Kurdistan Regional Government’s security council released statistics for the past eight and a half months, from October 24, 2023, to July 12, 2024, explaining their efforts in combating narcotics trafficking. During this period, authorities seized 952 kilograms of various narcotics, including 5 kilograms of heroin, 89 kilograms of hashish, 3 kilograms of marijuana, 28 kilograms of opium, 205 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine, 51 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine mixed with liquids, 365 kilograms of Captagon tablets totaling 2.2 million pills, 206 kilograms of Captagon tablets disguised in foam totaling 1.2 million pills, and 28,944 tramadol tablets.
In the past year, 3,353 individuals linked to narcotics trade and use were arrested in the Kurdistan Region. In the first five months of 2024 alone, 1,322 arrests were made across the governorates of Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, and Duhok. Sulaymaniyah accounted for 585 of these arrests, while the remaining 737 arrests in Erbil and Duhok included 403 individuals directly involved in the narcotics trade.
Nationally, the Anti-Narcotics Directorate reported efforts against drug-related crimes in 2024, apprehending 6,000 suspects and seizing 10 tons of various drugs. In the previous year, Iraqi authorities captured 144 international drug traffickers, leading to the confiscation of four tons of narcotics, 15 tons of psychotropic substances, 1,700 firearms, and 1,200 vehicles.