Iraq: Drug judge killed in mid-street

An Iraqi drug judge has been shot dead in the middle of the street by unknown individuals in southern Iraq on Saturday, according to sources close to the police and forensic service.

Judge Ahmed Faisal was driving home to Amara, the capital of Misan province, when unknown assailants blocked his way and opened fire on him, a police officer who spoke on condition of anonymity told AFP.

A forensic pathologist confirmed that the judge succumbed to head and chest injuries.

Both sources said there were at least 15 Kalashnikov assault rifle butts.

There has been no claim of responsibility for the murder.

In September, another drug judge escaped an assassination attempt in the same province, Misan. The region has seen a rapid deterioration in the security situation in recent months, due to inter-tribal clashes and clearing of political accounts.

Southern and central Iraq, which borders Iran, has in recent years become part of drug trafficking routes, particularly crystalline methamphetamine. Security forces have stepped up their operations; they report drug seizures and arrests of traffickers almost daily.

However, Iraq is no longer just a transit country: drug sales and consumption have skyrocketed in recent years.

In December, the Interior Ministry’s drug prosecution service identified two southern provinces, Basra and Misan, where the problem of “trafficking and consumption” of psychoactive substances is more acute.

The provinces of western Iraq, in turn, are part of the Caphtagon transit route to neighboring Syria. This substance, which is produced and consumed almost exclusively in the Middle East, is a stimulant of the amphetamine family.

Source: AMPE