Interior Minister says they detain 5,000 drug dealers weekly

Turkish Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu on Nov. 7 said that Turkish security forces detain an average of 5,000 drug dealers per week.

“We are carrying out the largest drug operations in history. We detain an average of 5,000 drug dealers per week. Just yesterday, over 1,900 kilograms of cannabis was seized in Diyarbakır province. We will not tolerate those who try to infect our youth with this disease,” Soylu claimed after an operation held against drug trafficking in the western province of Bursa.

Soylu said 95 drug dealers were caught in the operation.

Last week, main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu said that there is a “methamphetamine” crisis in Turkey, spreading quickly among children especially in poor neighborhoods.

Blaming the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu, Kılıçdaroğlu claimed drug lords from all over the world are coming to Turkey because the AKP government wants to reduce the current account deficit.

The palace (President Erdoğan and his aides) knows very well that they themselves invited these drugs to this country. ‘Breaking Bad Süleyman’ (Soylu) has allowed the country’s children to be poisoned. They allowed all kinds of dirty money to enter the country. They said, ‘Bring money, I will not ask for its source’ and they used this dirty money, namely billions of dollars, that is, drug money to finance Turkey’s current account deficit,” Kılıçdaroğlu said.

After the allegations, Soylu said that they are filing a lawsuit against “slanderer” Kılıçdaroğlu.

After Soylu’s latest remarks, the opposition figures invited Soylu to resign.

“Soylu said that an average of 5,000 drug dealers are detained per week. Kılıçdaroğlu had said, Soylu had confessed: The country has become a drug hub! What are you waiting for to resign?” CHP lawmaker Tuncay Özkan said.

“If it is 5 thousand a week, 20,000 a month, 240,000 a year, this country are home to people dealing with drug dealing. Woe to us,” the opposition İYİ (Good) Party Group Deputy Chair İbrahim Özkan said.