Dozens of drug traffickers apprehended in ops in 7 Turkish provinces
The drugs seized in operations conducted by the Diyarbakır Provincial Gendarmerie Command are on display, Türkiye, Sept. 24, 2023. (DHA Photo)


Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced on Sunday that 72 drug traffickers were apprehended in drug operations conducted in seven provinces across Türkiye.

Yerlikaya, in a statement on his official social media account, noted that operations were carried out in Ağrı, Muğla, Diyarbakır, Tekirdağ, Sakarya, Aydın and Bingöl provinces.

Congratulating the gendarmerie and the police personnel who conducted the operations, Yerlikaya said: "We will not turn a blind eye to drug traffickers. We are determined to apprehend them and deliver to justice. We will not allow them to poison our future, our youth and our society."

According to the information provided by the minister, in an operation conducted by Ağrı Provincial Security Directorate, 25 kilograms (55 pounds) of liquid methamphetamine was seized while one suspect was detained.

In an operation carried out by the Muğla Provincial Security Directorate, 2 kilograms of liquid methamphetamine were seized, and one person was detained.

In the "Martyr Jandarma Second Lieutenant Murat Ataş Narcoterrorism Operation" conducted by Diyarbakır Provincial Gendarmerie Command in Lice rural areas, 80 kilograms of powdered cannabis, 1.5 kilograms of cube cannabis, 834,000 hemp plants and 2,850,000 skunk plants were seized, while seven individuals were apprehended, the minister informed.

Furthermore, in an operation conducted in northwestern Tekirdağ province, some 15,680 narcotics pills were seized, and one person was detained.

In separate operations organized by Sakarya Provincial Gendarmerie Command and Provincial Security Directorate, 9.5 kilograms of cannabis and various narcotics weighing 500 grams were seized, and 14 individuals were apprehended.

Meanwhile, some 2.2 kilograms of cannabis and 1.6 kilograms of methamphetamine were seized, and 48 individuals were detained in an operation conducted by the Aydın Provincial Gendarmerie Command.

In an operation organized by Bingöl Provincial Gendarmerie Command, 13 kilograms of cannabis were seized, Yerlikaya said.