ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Iraqi authorities on Wednesday announced arresting a suspected drug-trafficker in the Shiite holy city of Najaf, who was in possession of 100,000 captagon pills.

The suspected trafficker was arrested in a preemptive operation, which relied on “precise intelligence” and “a well-planned ambush, and surveillance that lasted for 30 days,” according to a statement from the Iraqi interior ministry’s drug affairs directorate.

“The authorities seized 100,000 (one hundred thousand) captagon pills that he intended to trade,” the statement added.

Iraq’s Interior Ministry on Saturday announced that they had arrested 14,000 people on drug-related charges and have seized around six tons of different narcotics in 2024. A total of 82 death sentences were issued for drug-related charges during the same period

Iraq, with its extensive borders with Syria, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait, has evolved from a transit route to a significant drug consumption market. The Gulf countries, particularly Saudi Arabia, are the main destinations for smuggled captagon.

Despite consecutive government cabinet’s pledging to fight the drug phenomena in the country and Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani having ordered the establishment of rehabilitation centers across all Iraqi provinces, the country’s infrastructure is still too weak to combat the rapid increase in drug use.

Prison cells across the country are often seen overcrowded with people. Both drug dealers and users are inseparably squeezed into cells together, with few rehab centers available. This has in turn increased cases of relapse even after one has served prison time.