Turkish gendarmerie teams have detained 424 suspects in nationwide drug operations carried out over the past two weeks, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on Wednesday.
In a statement posted on X, Yerlikaya said operations targeting drug dealers were conducted across 63 provinces, resulting in the seizure of 1.34 metric tons of narcotics and 178,615 pills.
63 ilde “Uyuşturucu Madde Satıcılarına” yönelik Jandarmamız tarafından son 2 haftadır düzenlenen operasyonlarımızda;
🔻1 Ton 343 kg Uyuşturucu Madde ile
🔻178 Bin 615 adet Uyuşturucu Hap ele geçirerek, insanlara arz edilmesini ve toplum sağlığına zarar vermesini engelledik.… pic.twitter.com/1wTuu966JX— Ali Yerlikaya (@AliYerlikaya) January 7, 2026
Of the detainees, 162 were arrested, while 70 others were released under judicial supervision, Yerlikaya said. Legal proceedings for the remaining suspects are ongoing.
The operations were coordinated by chief public prosecutors’ offices and gendarmerie narcotics units, with the participation of more than 4,600 teams and nearly 15,000 personnel, according to the minister.
Raids were carried out in İstanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Antalya, Adana, Gaziantep, Diyarbakir, Van and other provinces.
“Turkey’s fight against drug traffickers is continuing and will not stop,” Yerlikaya said, praising the security forces involved in the operations.
The nationwide crackdown comes amid a broader series of drug-related investigations in recent months, including high-profile probes in İstanbul that have led to the detention of figures from the media, entertainment and business sectors.
Accusations vary from drug use and possession to trafficking and facilitating drug use.
Those investigations are ongoing and separate from the nationwide operations announced by the interior minister.