Middle East
The interior ministers of Iraq, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon hold a joint press conference in Amman on February 17, 2024. Photo: Iraqi Ministry of Interior/Facebook
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The interior ministers of Iraq, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon held a quadrilateral meeting in Amman on Saturday, announcing cooperation on combating narcotics and the spread of illegal substances.
“We all admit that there is a big problem, which is drugs, and that all of our communities struggle with this issue. The states are working on a national level to handle this phenomenon, but we all agreed today that without a joint coordination effort we will not reach the results that we want,” Jordan Interior Minister Mazin al-Farrayeh said during a joint press conference following the meeting.
The ministers agreed to continue the meetings and establish a joint communications cell to keep up cooperation on addressing the alarming rise of narcotics in their countries.
Jordan has become a transit point of drugs, particularly captagon, being smuggled out of Syria which has turned into a Middle Eastern hub for narcotics.
The rate of drug addicts and dealers has been on an alarming rise in Iraq in recent years, despite strict measures taken by the Iraqi government to curb the phenomenon.
More than 19,000 people were arrested across Iraq in 2023 on drug-related charges and over 15 tons psychotropic substances were seized during that year.
“The challenge of drug gangs last year was like a battle, and our measures were harsh on them, and we promise them that this year will be harsher,” said Iraqi Interior Minister Abdul-Amir al-Shammari.
Iraq’s Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani has ordered the establishment of rehabilitation centers in all Iraqi provinces, excluding the Kurdistan Region, as part of his cabinet’s commitment to combat growing drug trade and use as seriously as the country fights terrorism.
Jordanian warplanes in December carried out a series of airstrikes against suspected drug trafficking positions in southern Syria.
“We all admit that there is a big problem, which is drugs, and that all of our communities struggle with this issue. The states are working on a national level to handle this phenomenon, but we all agreed today that without a joint coordination effort we will not reach the results that we want,” Jordan Interior Minister Mazin al-Farrayeh said during a joint press conference following the meeting.
The ministers agreed to continue the meetings and establish a joint communications cell to keep up cooperation on addressing the alarming rise of narcotics in their countries.
Jordan has become a transit point of drugs, particularly captagon, being smuggled out of Syria which has turned into a Middle Eastern hub for narcotics.
The rate of drug addicts and dealers has been on an alarming rise in Iraq in recent years, despite strict measures taken by the Iraqi government to curb the phenomenon.
More than 19,000 people were arrested across Iraq in 2023 on drug-related charges and over 15 tons psychotropic substances were seized during that year.
“The challenge of drug gangs last year was like a battle, and our measures were harsh on them, and we promise them that this year will be harsher,” said Iraqi Interior Minister Abdul-Amir al-Shammari.
Iraq’s Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani has ordered the establishment of rehabilitation centers in all Iraqi provinces, excluding the Kurdistan Region, as part of his cabinet’s commitment to combat growing drug trade and use as seriously as the country fights terrorism.
Jordanian warplanes in December carried out a series of airstrikes against suspected drug trafficking positions in southern Syria.
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