Iraq's security forces have seized an estimated 1.1 ton of captagon pills hidden inside a truck that entered Iraq from Syria via Türkiye, the Interior Ministry said on Sunday.
The drug shipment, the largest ever seized in Iraq, was tracked and intercepted with the assistance of "important information" provided by Saudi's drug enforcement agency, the Interior Ministry spokesperson Brigadier Muqdad Meri said in a televised statement.
Saudi Arabia said it contributed to thwarting an attempt to smuggle seven million amphetamine pills into Iraq, according to a statement by ministry security spokesman Colonel Talal bin Abdul Mohsen bin Shalhoub.
Through proactive security monitoring of criminal networks involved in drug trafficking, the General Directorate of Narcotics Control provided intelligence to its Iraqi counterpart, leading to the interception of the illicit shipment. The drugs were concealed within a consignment of children's toys and ironing boards.
Shalhoub praised the close cooperation between Saudi and Iraqi authorities in combating drug smuggling.
He reiterated the Kingdom’s commitment to tracking and dismantling criminal operations involved in narcotics production and trafficking, in collaboration with counterpart agencies in brotherly and friendly countries.
