Basra Police quell clashes after gunmen attack police station, seize weapons
Shafaq News/ Basra police on Friday said they had contained armed clashes that erupted after a police station in the Shubaibat district was attacked by unknown gunmen.
Security forces responded decisively to the attack, the Basra Police Headquarters said in a statement. They then identified a wanted suspect, Mohammed Yousif Yaqoub, and raided his residence.
"During the raid, Yaqoub's brother, Yahya Yousif Yaqoub, was apprehended," the statement continued. "A significant cache of weapons was also seized, including a PKC machine gun, M4 carbine, Saiga shotgun, Kalashnikov rifle, ammunition, and a combat vest."
Following the arrest, a group of armed men converged on the residence. A contingent from the Special Tactical Unit arrived and engaged in a brief firefight with the gunmen before they fled.
"Security forces are currently conducting sweeps to apprehend any remaining armed individuals," the Basra Police Headquarters confirmed. "The security situation in the area is under control."
A 2019 study by the University of Washington revealed that Iraq had the highest rate of violent gun deaths per capita in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), more than the US. At least 8 million weapons of all types are believed to be in circulation in Iraq. Other estimates suggest that there are between 13 and 15 million pieces of medium and light weaponry owned by non-state actors. With no real state control to oversee them, illegal firearms are responsible for hundreds of deaths each year, sometimes involving celebratory shootings at weddings or funerals that end in tragedy. To tackle the scale of this problem, the Iraqi government launched a campaign at the end of 2023 to retrieve unregistered firearms, but only minor, if any, change was noticed.
