Iraq ends drug smuggling through Shatt al-Arab waterway

Shafaq News/ Iraq’s Interior Minister Abdul Amir al-Shammari revealed on Thursday that authorities had ended drug smuggling through the Shatt al-Arab waterway in Basra.

During his visit to Basra, leading a senior security delegation, al-Shammari told reporters that drug trafficking in the province is under control, citing efforts to intercept smuggling routes, dismantle local and international networks, and manage supply and demand. He also said that individuals undergoing compulsory rehabilitation were being treated as victims.

The minister pointed out that smuggling through Shatt al-Arab was “fully controlled” following the construction of an earthen barrier equipped with border posts and high-resolution surveillance cameras.

The Shatt al-Arab, a strategic waterway formed by the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, serves as a natural border between Iraq and Iran. The area has been a known smuggling corridor for years due to its complex terrain and limited surveillance.

Drug trafficking, particularly of methamphetamine and Captagon pills, has surged across the Iraqi borders, mainly with Syria and Iran, in recent years, prompting increased security operations.

According to the Iraqi Interior Ministry, thousands of drug-related arrests have been made since 2022, and several trafficking networks have been dismantled in all Iraqi provinces.