Ankara: Turkish security forces detained at least 72 suspects in anti-narcotic operations across seven provinces, Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said in a statement on Sunday.
The operations were carried out in the provinces of Agri, Mugla, Diyarbakir, Tekirdag, Sakarya, Aydin and Bingol, according to the statement.
It added that 9.5 kg of cannabis and various narcotics weighing 0.5 kg were seized in Sakarya, 13 kg of cannabis in Bingol, and some 2.2 kg of cannabis and 1.6 kg of methamphetamine in Aydin.
In addition, some 15,680 pills were seized in Tekirdag, 80 kg of powdered cannabis, 834,000 hemp plants, etc., in Diyarbakir, and 2 kg and 25 kg of liquid methamphetamine in Mugla and Agri, respectively.
“We will give no respite to drug traffickers. We are determined to catch them and deliver them to justice. We will not allow them to poison our future, youth, and society,” the statement quoted the minister as saying.
Located at the crossroads of Asia and Europe, Türkiye has been grappling with international drug smuggling for many years. Turkish security forces frequently launch operations against drug dealers as part of an ongoing nationwide crackdown on drug use and trafficking.
