IRAQ: DEATH SENTENCE ISSUED IN 2.5 KG METH SMUGGLING CASE

June 18, 2026:

The Najaf Criminal Court sentenced a convicted drug trafficker to death after authorities seized 2.5 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine he was trying to bring into the province, a security source told Shafaq News on June 18, 2026.
The court handed down the sentence under Article 27 of Iraq's Anti-Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances Law No. 50 of 2017.
Since the start of 2026, Iraqi courts have issued 42 death sentences and 357 life imprisonment rulings against convicted drug traffickers, while security forces have seized more than 1.697 tons of narcotics, according to the Interior Ministry's Directorate for Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances.