TEHRAN -- Some 400,000 of Italy's total of 58 million are addicted to heroin, according to a report released Saturday by the Italian Foreign Ministry.

It said the consumption of heroin in Italy claimed the death of 882 persons last year, 700 of which were males.

The report further said that last year some 250 people from the drug addict population applied for acceptance in 572 drug rehabilitation centers.

It said the majority of drug addicts in Italy are young people who consume an assortment of drugs, and that since last year the Italian government has intensified its fight against drug trafficking and international drug bands.