ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Iraq’s Supreme Judicial Council announced on Tuesday the arrest of an unspecified number of individuals accused of engaging in witchcraft and sorcery and the seizure of tools used in the practice.  

"As part of the efforts of the judiciary and security agencies to combat deviant phenomena, a number of individuals accused of practicing witchcraft and sorcery were arrested in several Iraqi provinces,” the judiciary said in a statement.

The judiciary warned people against "visiting establishments used for witchcraft and sorcery, as their owners engage in immoral practices that are exploited to blackmail innocent victims.”

Large numbers of people in Iraq, including in the Kurdistan Region, are believed to seek the services of witchcraft and sorcery practitioners.

This phenomenon poses the risk of blackmail for those who seek such services, with Baghdad and Erbil authorities repeatedly clamping down on practitioners.

In September, the Iraqi National Security Service announced it had arrested two suspects in Baghdad for practicing witchcraft and sorcery, with the pair being accused of having extorted more than 400 victims.

The practice of witchcraft is prohibited according to Iraqi law, with practitioners facing severe punishments, including a maximum sentence of five years.

In addition to sorcerers, self-proclaimed healers present another issue in a similar vein, with these individuals claiming to be able to resolve ailments by invoking mystic powers.