Iraqi and Syrian anti-narcotics forces said they dismantled an international drug trafficking network in joint operations conducted inside Syria, arresting nine suspected traffickers.[1][2][3] The operations ran over several days across the eastern Deir ez-Zor and central Homs provinces in coordination between the two countries’ agencies.[1][2][3]

The Iraqi anti-narcotics directorate said the network comprised nine major traffickers and that the operations seized 200 kilograms of various narcotics intended for smuggling into Iraq for distribution.[1] The seizure included 800,000 Captagon pills and 60 kilograms of hashish, a breakdown the reports attribute to the Syrian Interior Ministry.[1][2][3] The Syrian Future Movement account confirms the same seizure totals of about 800,000 Captagon pills and 60 kilograms of hashish in Homs and Deir ez-Zor.[2]

The reports describe the seizures as intended for smuggling and distribution rather than personal use.[1] The New Region published a Syrian Interior Ministry photograph of the confiscated narcotics with its report on the operation.[1]

The ministry said in a statement on Facebook that the operation was carried out “as part of its continued efforts to combat organized crime and cross-border smuggling operations,”[3]