SULAIMANI (ESTA) — Police forces in the oil-rich city of Kirkuk clashed with a drug dealer during Monday morning hours in an attempt to arrest the offender.
Esta Media Network reporter near the vicinity of the incident stated police forces clashed with the drug dealer while trying to arrest him.
An exchange of fire between police and the offender was reported, resulting in injuring a police officer, according to the reporter’s words, adding that eventually the drug dealer was arrested as well.
The offender was injured too, he added.
Iraqi security forces have intensified narcotics operations in recent months, with several high-profile drug seizures reported.
The sale and use of drugs in Iraq has soared in recent years.
Areas in central and southern Iraq bordering Iran have become major narcotic trafficking routes for drugs, including crystal methamphetamine.
The interior ministry’s anti-drug unit in December 2021 named the provinces of Basra and Maysan as the “leading southern provinces in terms of trafficking and consumption”.
