Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu stated that 176 people were detained and 26 kilograms (57 pounds) of narcotic drugs were seized during operations conducted by the Istanbul Police's Department Anti-Narcotics Crimes Branch Directorate across the province on Friday.

Soylu released a statement on his official Twitter account regarding "Operation Rooting," hailing the work of police personnel working under Istanbul Police's Department Anti-Narcotics Crimes Branch Directorate.

"Continue until total eradication. Our Istanbul Provincial Anti-Narcotics Crimes Branch Directorate seized 26 kilograms of narcotic drugs and 84,325 ecstasy/captagon pills, while a total of 176 people have been taken into custody after operations across Istanbul on Jan. 12."

The latest Istanbul anti-narcotics operation follows the nationwide campaigns carried out between Jan. 2-8 in Kocaeli, Manisa, Kahramanmaraş and Denizli. A massive anti-narcotics operation conducted under the Interior Ministry's supervision was also undertaken in the western city of Uşak on Tuesday in which 120 suspects were detained.