Shafaq News- Basra

Iraqi border forces arrested three siblings carrying 2,000 pills of methadone, a synthetic opioid, at the Shalamcheh border crossing in southern Basra province, the Border Guard Command announced on Tuesday.

A K9 unit detected the concealed pills, leading customs police to detain two women and their brother.

Earlier today, Basra security forces arrested five suspected drug dealers after one opened fire on narcotics officers, wounding one of them.

In July, Iraq’s Interior Ministry said authorities had seized 16.8 tons of narcotics since 2023, while courts issued 380 death sentences, 150 life sentences and 190 international arrest warrants in drug trafficking cases.