Kurdistan region authorities seize 29 kilograms of Captagon

SULAYMANIYAH — Authorities in the Kurdistan Region have seized 29 kilograms of Captagon pills and arrested two major drug traffickers at the Pshdar border in the Raparin Autonomous Administration of Sulaymaniyah, officials said. The operation, carried out in coordination with Border Guards and the Raparin Security Directorate, took place on the night of February 27, 2025.

“Security forces intercepted 29 kilograms of Captagon pills at the Pshdar border, and within less than 24 hours, two major drug traffickers were arrested based on intelligence gathered by counter-narcotics teams,” the agency said.

Officials stated that the suspects are accused of smuggling narcotics across several cities in the Kurdistan Region and Iraq. They have been charged under Article 25 of the Counter-Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances Law, and authorities continue to investigate their networks.

“Our teams remain on high alert to prevent the spread of narcotics and bring traffickers to justice in order to protect public health,” the statement added.

Iraq has witnessed multiple large-scale Captagon seizures in recent months as efforts intensify to dismantle drug smuggling networks. In Nineveh, security forces intercepted a drone carrying a significant quantity of Captagon pills near the Iraq-Syria border on Jan. 13. On Dec. 25, Iraq’s General Directorate for Narcotics Affairs arrested a suspected trafficker in Najaf and confiscated 100,000 Captagon pills after a month-long intelligence operation.

Other notable busts include a Nov. 10 operation in Basra, where authorities dismantled an international trafficking network known locally as a “soft death network” by arresting four traffickers, including a foreign national, and seizing 170 kilograms of Captagon. One of the largest seizures occurred on Oct. 17, when Iraq’s National Security Service confiscated 500,000 Captagon pills hidden in a consignment of vegetables.