ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - Iraq’s Ministry of the Interior has announced the arrest of nearly 50 individuals accused of engaging in witchcraft and sorcery and the seizure of tools used in the practice in the course of the past two weeks.

The arrests were made as a nationwide "large-scale campaign targeting locations practicing witchcraft and sorcery.”

"The campaign resulted in the arrest of 48 male and female sorcerers and witches involved in human trafficking cases and exploiting victims through fraudulent and deceptive means, under the guise of witchcraft practices and claims of spiritual healing or resolving family problems,” the interior ministry said.

Preliminary investigations revealed that the arrested were involved in "blackmail, deception, and psychological and physical exploitation, particularly targeting women and children, in a flagrant violation of human rights and dignity.”

Large numbers of people in Iraq, including in the Kurdistan Region, are believed to seek the services of witchcraft and sorcery practitioners.

This phenomenon poses the risk of blackmail for those who avail of such services, with Baghdad and Erbil authorities repeatedly clamping down on practitioners.

In September, the Iraqi National Security Service announced it had arrested two suspects in Baghdad for practicing witchcraft and sorcery, with the pair being accused of having extorted more than 400 victims.

The practice of witchcraft is prohibited according to Iraqi law, with practitioners facing severe punishments, including a maximum sentence of five years.

In addition to sorcerers, self-proclaimed healers present another issue in a similar vein, with these individuals claiming to be able to resolve ailments by invoking mystic powers.