ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Duhok province has the lowest crime rate in Iraq followed by Nineveh, a councilor said on Thursday, citing statistics from the federal interior ministry. Mohammed Jassim Kakai, head of the security and defense committee in the Nineveh Provincial Council, told Rudaw that ministry figures show Duhok ranks first nationwide for lowest crime rates, followed by neighboring Nineveh. He said the ministry provides monthly reports to provincial councils, but the information is not publicly released. Kakai added that the security situation in Nineveh is currently very good, noting that when crimes occur, security forces are able to apprehend suspects. He said the highest crime levels are recorded in southern provinces, largely driven by tribal clashes and narcotics-related violence. Meanwhile, drug trafficking and use have surged across Iraq and the Kurdistan Region over the past two decades. Last week, two Asayish (security) members were killed in Duhok’s Sheikhan district while attempting to apprehend a suspected drug trafficker, who was also killed in the overnight shootout, according to district mayor Sardar Sheikh Yahya. The suspect’s father and wife later denied his involvement in the narcotics trade. The following day, Ahmad Laibi, spokesperson for Iraq’s Ministry of Justice, told Rudaw that drug-related incarcerations have overtaken terrorism cases, with around 68,000 people currently in Iraq’s prisons. Between 10,000 and 15,000 of them were convicted on drug-related charges, including both users and traffickers. Iraq is working to combat the growing threat from drugs. Authorities have dismantled international drug networks and arrested traffickers, some of whom have been sentenced to life in prison. Baghdad is also cooperating with other countries in combating drug trafficking.
