Iranian Police Seize 4.7 Tons of Illicit Drugs in Northwestern Province


Iranian Police Seize 4.7 Tons of Illicit Drugs in Northwestern Province

TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iran’s anti-narcotic police forces in the northwestern province of West Azerbaijan managed to seize 4,700 kilograms of illicit drugs over the first five months of the current Iranian year (March 21 – August 22), a provincial police chief announced.

“Over the past five months, 4,700 kilograms of narcotics have been seized in the province,” West Azerbaijan Police Chief Brigadier General Nasser Aslani said on Saturday.

He noted that this year’s drug seizures in the province have increased by 60 percent, compared to the same period last year.

“This year, we witnessed a 25 percent increase in the number of disbanded drug rings in the province,” he also stated.

The commander further said members of seven drug gangs as well as 600 smugglers were apprehended in the province over the past five months.

In recent decades, Iran has been hit by drug trafficking, mainly because of its 936-kilometer shared border with Afghanistan, which produces more than 90% of the world’s opium.

According to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, the Islamic Republic is netting eight times more opium and three times more heroin than all other countries in the world combined.

The war on drug trade originating from Afghanistan has claimed the lives of nearly 3,700 Iranian police officers over the past 30 years.

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