Drug shipment using GPS-equipped balloons intercepted in Anbar desert

ANBAR — The Military Intelligence Directorate announced that it thwarted an attempt to smuggle a shipment of drugs using GPS-equipped balloons in the Anbar desert.

In a statement, the directorate said units from the Intelligence and Security Department of the 5th Infantry Division carried out the operation based on intelligence information and thermal camera surveillance.

The statement said the balloons, which were brought down in the desert, contained about 136,000 captagon pills. The shipment was intended to bypass checkpoints and evade security monitoring.

The directorate said the operation followed continued tracking of the movements of those involved, allowing forces to seize the shipment before it reached its destination and to stop what it described as a new smuggling method.

Border forces have foiled multiple balloon-borne smuggling attempts in Anbar and other governorates, as traffickers increasingly turn to low-cost aerial methods to bypass ground patrols. Earlier this year, forces intercepted two similar attempts in Anbar, seizing about 262,000 pills.

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. In the first quarter of 2025, authorities reported 3,006 arrests related to drug offenses.