Turkish police have seized 4.8 tons of drugs and detained 1,780 people across the country in the last two weeks in narcotics operations, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced Thursday on X.
The “NARKOÇELİK-48” operations, which saw police seize 4.8 tons of drugs in addition to some 9.9 million pills, spanned 73 provinces, including Adana, Diyarbakır, Erzurum, Gaziantep, Hakkari, İstanbul, İzmir, Şanlıurfa and Van.
The seized items include chemical raw materials, methamphetamine, marijuana and “super strength” marijuana (“skunk”).
Yerlikaya said 4.16 tons of methamphetamine were seized within the past two weeks, including 3.5 tons in İstanbul, while the rest was found in other cities, including İzmir in the west and Hakkari near the border with Iran and Iraq.
More than 4.5 tons were found in early November in three trucks crossing into Turkey from Iran, according to Turkish customs. In all, Turkish police confiscated nearly 22 tons of methamphetamine last year, a sharp increase over previous years, according to official figures.
Methamphetamine is a stimulant whose effects are two to five times more intense and long-lasting than amphetamine, with greater addictive potential, experts say. This synthetic drug, popular in Turkey, is sold in Europe or North America in the form of crystals, powder, capsules or tablets.
The European Union Drugs Agency says the increase in methamphetamine seizures in Turkey could be explained by a rise in production in Iran and Afghanistan, where its trade has intensified since the Taliban imposed a ban in 2022 on the cultivation of opium poppies, used to manufacture heroin.
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime “Global Report on Cocaine 2023” also revealed Turkey’s growing role as a transit country for cocaine. In 2021, Turkish authorities seized a record 2.8 tons of cocaine, reflecting a seven-fold increase in drug seizures since 2014. The report notes that some cocaine reaches Turkey via West Africa, while other shipments come directly from Latin America. The outbound flow from Turkey primarily moves westward through the Black Sea and the Balkans.
The crackdown on drug trafficking networks in Turkey has gained momentum following a cabinet reshuffle in President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s administration in June of last year. The new leadership appears to be taking a harder stance against drug trafficking, which was allegedly facilitated by authorities under the previous interior minister, Süleyman Soylu.
During Soylu’s time in office, Turkey faced allegations of involvement in international drug trafficking, primarily driven by Turkish mob boss Sedat Peker. In a series of dramatic videos in 2021, Peker accused Soylu and other high-ranking officials of protecting and facilitating cocaine trafficking networks.
Observers speculate that the recent shift in Turkey’s stance on drugs may be part of a broader effort to restore the rule of law and reassure international investors amid Turkey’s economic challenges.