Türkiye’s interior minister said on Nov. 14 that police seized more than 1.5 tons of skunk and detained five suspects in a coordinated narcotics operation at the northwestern city of Kocaeli's Derince port.
Ali Yerlikaya said the Nov. 13 raid was carried out jointly by anti-narcotics teams from Kocaeli, Istanbul, Ankara and Artvin. In a statement posted on his social media accounts, he said authorities were working to shield the public “especially our youth” from what he described as drugs that amount to “a crime against humanity.”
“We are waging this struggle not only for our country, but for all of humanity,” he wrote.
Later in the day, Yerlikaya announced a broader sweep targeting five international drug networks across 22 provinces. He said 138 suspects — including three alleged ringleaders — were taken into custody.
In the lead-up to the raids, Turkish authorities shared intelligence and documents with police in the Netherlands, Iran, Estonia, Slovenia, Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, Greece, Panama, the United Kingdom, Belgium and Bulgaria, he said.
