Man arrested for illegal tree cutting in Sulaymaniyah

SULAYMANIYAH — Authorities arrested a man Wednesday for illegally cutting down trees in Sulaymaniyah, the Forestry and Environment Police said.

Hemin Kamerkhan, spokesperson for Sulaymaniyah’s Forestry and Environment Police, told 964media that officers from the Nalparez station apprehended the suspect in Razla village. He was caught with a pickup truck loaded with freshly cut trees, and both the vehicle and its cargo were seized.

Kamerkhan said the case has been referred to the judiciary for legal action. He also noted that three people have been arrested in the region since the start of Ramadan for illegal logging.

Unauthorized tree cutting is a major contributor to deforestation in the Kurdistan Region, where some traders and individuals bypass environmental regulations to produce charcoal or firewood. Data from the Sulaymaniyah Forestry and Environment Police shows that 23 individuals were apprehended for illegal tree cutting in the governorate during the first three weeks of the new year. In December 2024 alone, 37 individuals were arrested for logging trees in protected forest areas.

According to the Kurdistan Regional Government’s Board of Environmental Protection and Improvement, offenders face a fine of 500,000 dinars (about $330); failure to pay may result in up to three months in prison.