Deadly narcotics standoff in Iraq’s Kirkuk

Shafaq News– Kirkuk

One SWAT officer was killed and another injured during clashes between Iraqi security forces and drug traffickers in the Darman area of Kirkuk, a security source told Shafaq News on Monday.

According to the source, the operation led to the capture of one of the region’s leading drug traffickers, along with the seizure of illegal substances. Weapons, hand grenades, and explosives were also recovered at the scene.

Drug trafficking has surged across Iraq in recent years, with security officials warning that the country is increasingly serving as both a consumer market and a transit point for regional smuggling. A 2025 report by The Iraqi Strategic Center for Human Rights documented the dismantling of 230 trafficking networks in recent months, including 27 international groups.

Over the past three years, authorities have detained 43,000 individuals for drug trafficking and possession, confiscating more than 28 tons of narcotics and psychotropic substances, along with millions of illicit and hallucinogenic pills.

Read more: Iraq fights back against synthetic drug flood engulfing the Middle East