Military intelligence arrests 11 suspected drug traffickers in Baghdad

BAGHDAD — Iraq’s Military Intelligence Directorate announced Saturday the arrest of 11 suspected drug traffickers and dealers in various areas of the capital.

The directorate said joint units set up surprise checkpoints in multiple areas of Baghdad based on intelligence from the Intelligence and Security Department within Baghdad Operations Command.

“Military intelligence personnel within the joint units were able to apprehend 11 drug traffickers and dealers in different areas of the capital,” the statement said.

The suspects were part of distribution networks active in several Baghdad neighborhoods. They were handed over, along with seized materials, to the relevant authorities for legal procedures.
Iraq has faced growing challenges from narcotics trafficking, evolving from a transit corridor into both a consumer market and a redistribution hub.

Courts have handed down some of the country’s toughest penalties in trafficking cases. Between January and August 2024, judges issued 140 death sentences and 500 life sentences in narcotics cases.

Last week, border forces thwarted two attempts to smuggle narcotics using balloons along the international border west of Anbar, seizing more than 311,000 pills.