Baghdad court sentences three to death for trafficking 18 kg of hashish

BAGHDAD – The Karkh Criminal Court on Sunday sentenced three people to death after convicting them of trafficking 18 kilograms of hashish intended for sale and distribution, the judiciary’s media office said.

The statement said authorities seized the narcotic substance in the defendants’ possession and determined it was prepared for sale to users. The court handed down the death sentences under Article 27/1 of the Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances Law No. 50 of 2017.

Drugs remain a major challenge in Iraq, which has shifted from serving mainly as a transit route for narcotics from neighboring countries to becoming both a consuming market and a redistribution hub.

Last week, police in Dhi Qar governorate announced the arrest of a man described as one of the region’s biggest drug traffickers, saying 20,000 Captagon pills were seized from his vehicle at a checkpoint north of Nasiriyah.

The General Directorate of Narcotics Affairs reported nationwide seizures of 250 kilograms of drugs and the arrest of 59 “international dealers” in September. In the first quarter of 2025, authorities arrested 3,006 people on drug-related offenses, and courts issued 973 sentences, according to an April report.

Between January and August 2024, Iraqi courts handed down 140 death sentences and 500 life sentences in narcotics cases, underscoring the judiciary’s continued use of the harshest penalties against high-level drug offenders.