Iraq security brief: Drugs, deadly remnants and major crimes
Shafaq News
Below is a summary of key security and crime-related incidents reported across Iraq on January 4, 2026.
- International Drug Network Busted (Najaf / Maysan)
Iraq’s Directorate of Drug Affairs arrested three suspects linked to an international drug trafficking network in Najaf, seizing nearly two kilograms of narcotics. In a separate operation in Maysan, four more suspects were detained with about 2.15 kilograms of drugs.
- Drug Smuggling Foiled (Al-Anbar)
Border forces intercepted two drug-smuggling attempts using airborne balloons along the international border west of Al-Anbar, seizing a total of 262,000 narcotic pills. Authorities said similar attempts have increased along border routes with Syria and Jordan.
- Life Sentence for Drug Dealer (Al-Anbar)
Al-Anbar Criminal Court sentenced a drug trafficker to life imprisonment after he was found in possession of 200,000 amphetamine pills intended for sale, under Iraq’s anti-narcotics law.
- Woman Assaulted by Employer (Baghdad)
Police arrested the owner of a foreign labor company and a woman in the Karrada district after an Ethiopian worker was assaulted, leaving her with injuries that required hospital treatment.
- ISIS Remnants Kill Shepherds (Nineveh)
Two young men were killed and three others wounded when an explosive remnant left by ISIS detonated near shepherds west of Mosul. Security forces secured the area and opened an investigation.
- Theft and Molotov Attack Thwarted (Baghdad)
Unknown assailants stole about 100 million Iraqi dinars (about $77K) from a home in southwest Baghdad. In a separate incident, two suspects were arrested after attempting to firebomb a woman’s house with Molotov cocktails in the Karkh area.
- Body Found at Dam (Kirkuk)
Security forces launched an investigation after a man’s body was discovered inside a dam north of Kirkuk. The victim’s identity and cause of death remain under forensic review.
- Suspected Suicide (Baghdad)
Police opened an inquiry into the death of a woman in her early 30s who was found hanged inside her home in the Nahrawan area southeast of the capital.
- Civil Defense Rescue (Baghdad)
Civil defense teams rescued three people trapped after the roof of an old vehicle repair workshop collapsed in Al-Kadhimiya’s industrial zone. No fatalities were reported.
- Food Poisoning Cases Rise (Baghdad / Al-Anbar)
Iraq’s Health Ministry said about 100 people—mostly children—were treated for food poisoning linked to meals distributed in southern Baghdad. Patients were transferred to hospitals in Abu Ghraib and Ameriyat al-Sumood. Investigations are ongoing.
- Fire Contained (Baghdad)
Firefighters extinguished a blaze at a plastics factory and warehouse in Al-Kadhimiya’s industrial area. Authorities said the fire was likely caused by an electrical fault, with no injuries reported.
