Khaberni - The Syrian Ministry of Interior announced today, Thursday, the execution of a joint security operation with the Iraqi authorities targeting an international drug smuggling network, resulting in the arrest of 3 people and the seizure of about 2.5 million Captagon pills, as part of Damascus' efforts to limit drug smuggling through its territories.
This marks the first time that the new Syrian government, since coming to power after the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad's regime at the end of 2024, has announced a joint operation with a neighboring state in the drug file, while it had announced in the past months significant captures of Captagon pills within the country.
"International Criminal Network"
The Syrian Ministry of Interior stated in a release that the “Drug Control Administration, in coordination with the General Directorate for Drug and Psychotropic Substance Affairs in the Republic of Iraq, implemented a joint security operation targeting an international criminal network specialized in the manufacture, promotion, and smuggling of narcotic substances".
The statement explained that the operation came as "the fruit of systematic intelligence work that included gathering, analyzing, and exchanging information among the competent authorities, in addition to monitoring the network's structure, logistical routes, and operational patterns, enabling the execution of simultaneous and precise field procedures within a geographical scope that included Homs and Rural Damascus provinces in the Syrian Arab Republic, and territories of the Republic of Iraq".
The operation, according to the Syrian Interior Ministry, resulted in "the arrests of the individuals known as (F.M) and (M.A) on Syrian territory, and the arrest of the individual (A.A) on Iraqi territory, and the seizure of approximately 2.5 million Captagon pills, in a qualitative strike that disrupted the operational and logistical capabilities of the network and dried up one of its main routes".
The ministry noted that "the seized quantity was confiscated on the spot, and the detainees inside the Syrian Arab Republic were referred to the competent judiciary to complete the investigations and take the necessary legal actions, while the relevant authorities continue to pursue the remaining elements of the network inside and outside the borders".
For its part, the Iraqi Ministry of Interior announced arresting a person inside Iraqi territory as part of the same operation, affirming its continued "pursuit of the rest of the network elements based on precise intelligence data".
Captagon.. Cross-Border Trade
Captagon has been one of Syria's largest exports during the war years that erupted in 2011, as selling this stimulating and illegal substance was a key source of financing for the ousted president.
Since Assad's overthrow, the Syrian government has announced the seizure of millions of Captagon pills in various areas within the country, although smuggling operations have not ceased, as indicated by frequent seizures inside Syria and in neighboring countries.
Last October, the Syrian Ministry of Interior seized 11 million Captagon pills in a vehicle arriving from Lebanon in the Homs region, in one of the largest drug shipments confiscated within the country.
Neighboring countries continue to announce periodically the capture of large quantities of this substance coming from or passing through Syrian territories, amid increasing regional and international pressures to stop the trade of Captagon and the networks associated with it.
Iraq, sharing borders with Syria, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait, has become a pivotal country in drug smuggling routes, and has turned into an important corridor for drug trade, particularly Captagon and "Crystal Meth"
Baghdad regularly announces the capture of large quantities of drugs, notably Captagon, with Saudi Arabia being the main destination according to Iraqi authorities.
In March, specialized forces in Iraq seized more than a ton of Captagon pills originating from Syria via Turkey, in the largest quantity captured in a smuggling operation in recent years.
