Iraqi Parliament calls for stricter border security to curb drug smuggling

Shafaq News/ On Saturday, the Iraqi Parliament’s Health and Environment Committee called for “stricter security” at border crossings to prevent drug entry from neighboring countries.

Committee member Zeinab al-Khazraji told Shafaq News Agency that “drug smuggling into Iraq occurs through both official and unofficial border crossings, which can be exploited by gangs to facilitate drug entry.”

“The Committee urges the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior to regularly rotate security service members and border crossing staff,” she added, confirming that “some associates and employees have begun using legal tricks to smuggle drugs, necessitating stricter oversight, accountability for negligence, and replacement of incompetent staff.”

Notably, the Iraqi Ministry of Interior's General Directorate of Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances Affairs reported the arrest of around 7,000 people and the seizure of two tons of drugs and 10 tons of psychotropic substances from early 2024 to July, reporting that around 30 drug traffickers were killed or injured in armed clashes, and 100 death sentences and life imprisonments were handed down for drug trafficking offenses in 2023-2024.