Baghdad’s largest alcohol warehouse found in district declared free of it

BAGHDAD — The National Security Service says it has seized about 27,000 cartons of alcohol from the largest warehouse of its kind uncovered in Baghdad, in the Karrada district a police commander declared free of alcohol shops and unlicensed clubs nine months ago.

Six Iraqi and foreign nationals were arrested at the site, which supplied central and southern governorates, the agency said. Large amounts of money and various weapons were also seized, without quantities given, and the operation followed information from the Muthanna Security Directorate. The warehouse has been placed under legal seizure.

The Rusafa police commander said in December that Karrada was free of alcohol shops and unlicensed clubs following orders from then Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, issued after residents complained and met him.

Three people were arrested in Anbar in a tractor-trailer said to be carrying large quantities of smuggled alcohol, again unquantified, after intelligence work and with judicial authorisation. A vehicle carrying 850 cartons was seized in Kirkuk, and a wanted man was arrested in Samawah under the Alcoholic Beverages Law.

A 2016 law bans the import, production and sale of alcohol in federal Iraq, with enforcement tightening since 2023. It does not apply in the Kurdistan Region and has been criticised by Christians and Yazidis, who were long involved in the trade. Shipments have been intercepted repeatedly as a black market has grown: Diyala police stopped a truck in April with alcohol concealed behind an iron barrier built to make the vehicle look empty.