Shafaq News/ On Wednesday, the Anti-Narcotics Department in Basra Province, in southern Iraq, reported that it had dismantled an international female network involved in drug trafficking.

The Head of the Media Department at the General Directorate of Narcotics Affairs, Hussein Youssef Al-Tamimi explained that the network consisted of three foreign women who were using a child as a cover for drug smuggling.

"They were caught red-handed with quantities of crystal meth… and placed in detention under Article (27 Narcotics), which carries a potential death penalty," he clarified.

In September, the Strategic Center for Human Rights in Iraq announced that the Ministry of Interior had dismantled 230 drug trafficking networks, including 27 international ones.

According to experts, for many years, Iraq served as a transit corridor for drugs moving from Afghanistan and Iran to Europe and the Gulf states.

Due to its strategic location, ongoing conflicts, and economic challenges, drug trafficking in Iraq has surged. In response, Iraqi authorities have ramped up their efforts, arresting hundreds of both local and foreign drug traffickers in 2024.