Turkish authorities have detained 202 people in a large-scale anti-drug operation spanning 24 provinces, according to the country's Ministry of the Interior.
The coordinated raids were carried out under the supervision of the General Prosecutor's Office, the Gendarmerie General Command, and regional gendarmerie units. More than 1,000 operational teams involving 6,440 personnel took part in the operation, Caliber.Az reports via Turkish media.
The investigation found that suspected street-level drug dealers allegedly used social media platforms and messaging applications to distribute illegal narcotics, while operating within an organised criminal network, the ministry said.
During the raids, security forces seized 412 kilograms of drugs and more than 367,000 tablets believed to be illicit substances.
Of the 202 suspects detained, 122 were formally arrested by court order, while the remaining 80 were released under judicial supervision pending further legal proceedings.
The operation was conducted across the provinces of Adıyaman, Afyonkarahisar, Antalya, Aydın, Balıkesir, Batman, Denizli, Diyarbakır, Edirne, Hakkari, Hatay, Istanbul, Izmir, Kahramanmaraş, Kayseri, Kocaeli, Malatya, Manisa, Mersin, Sakarya, Samsun, Tokat, Uşak, and Van.
By Sabina Mammadli
