By Anas al-Bar | 2024-10-18

Iraq is at increasing risk of becoming a regional hub for drug trafficking as smuggling operations driven by groups linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) expand across its borders with Iran and Syria, Iraqi sources said.

These armed groups are using several border points for smuggling activities, aided by the complex terrain and the length of the frontier, which extends over 2,000km and is difficult to police, they said.

The trade in illicit narcotics such as methamphetamine (crystal meth) and Captagon provides a major source of revenue for the groups, helping them to extend their influence and their arsenal of weapons.

Iraq has been working to get its borders under tight control to prevent the country from becoming a destination for the transit of narcotics.

Fortifications have been put in place on the border with Syria, Interior Minister Abdul Amir al-Shammari said September 27.

On Iraq's border with Iran, "control measures" have been taken, he said, and in late September security forces targeted two drug smuggling networks in Maysan and Diyala provinces.

Iraqi forces have been using drones and surveillance cameras to improve border control and target smuggling operations, he said, while specialized tactical units are pursuing trafficking networks inside the country.

The Ministry of Interior's General Directorate of Narcotics Affairs reported the "dismantling of several local and international drug networks" following security operations, without revealing the identities and affiliations of their members.

Four drug dealers were arrested September 24 in Anbar and Salaheddine who were in possession of 56kg of Captagon and Tramadol, the directorate said.

IRGC revenue stream

The illegal drug problem is becoming more dangerous in light of the continued control of Iraq's borders by IRGC-linked militias, political analyst Abdul Qader al-Nayel told Al-Fassel.

"Armed groups such as Asaib Ahl al-Haq, Kataib Hizbullah, and Harakat al-Nujaba still have strong influence on the border strip with Syria," he said.

"They secure and direct the flow of drugs through unofficial smuggling crossings that they opened several years ago between the Iraqi city of al-Qaim and the Syrian city of Deir Ezzor," he said.

Their influence also extends to official crossings and ports via partners linked to corrupt mafia-like gangs and drug smugglers, traffickers and distribution networks.

The militias do not want Iraq as just a market for drugs, but seek to turn it into "a major production center and an active passageway for distribution to all countries in the region," al-Nayel said.

By doing this, they and the IRGC hope to reap bigger revenues, he added.