IRAN: Police seize 220 lbs. of crystal meth as drug war drags on

Iran's has been battling the opium and heroin trade for years, but it appears now that a new homemade substance has found an market in the Islamic Republic.

Authorities confiscated 220 lbs of crystal methamphetamine and arrested one person Thursday in the southeastern town of Hirmand, state television reported.

In 2005, a study by the United Nations found that Iran had the highest drug addiction rate in the world, with 2.8% of the population addicted, mostly to opium and heroin, much of which was smuggled in from neighboring Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Iran has stepped up its war against drugs in recent years, but an upshot of less opium and heroin entering the country could be a rise in substances such as crystal meth, which pose a greater challenge to drug enforcement authorities because it can be made from common household products that bought legally.

On Sunday, authorities in the northwest announced the seizure of over a ton of illicit drugs in the last two months alone.

Karim Akbari, the local anti-narcotics squad leader, was quoted Sunday by Fars news agency as saying that his team had also arrested 70 traffickers and 501 dealers over the same period.

— Meris Lutz in Beirut

Comments

[Stanislaus]

Jon K.

2.8% of 300,000,000 is already near nine million. Really now.

[Patrick Mahoney]

People who feel down and out like to do things to change their mode. Unfortunately illegal drugs can do the job but the backlash is not worth the high. The same thing happens in Iran as the US because we are nations of people under great stress and are looking for ways to mitagate the stress. Too bad science can't work on developing a drug to help people experience joy, peace and a scence of belonging without a hole lot of side effects. My heart goes out to addicts in Iran and everywhere else.

[antarez]

Iran will come out ahead with this.Unlike the USA who babies and coddles drug pushers ,this fool will probably be executed,therefore their government(Iran) will not have to waste money on Lawyers,Trials,appeals,prisons,housing,rehabilitation only to have this idiot re-offend and go through the same cycle repeatedly.Something we could learn and something Mexico now needs desperately.

[Jon K.]

"In 2005, a study by the United Nations found that Iran had the highest drug addiction rate in the world, with 2.8% of the population addicted"

I find this to be completely surprising.

I would assume that addiction would be higher in Columbia, Afghanistan, even the United States.

[Curt Shannon]

Joe, not that I disagree with your comments, but how do they apply to the situation described in Iran, free of foreign - particularly Western - influences since 1989?

[Joe]

Anytime Western troops land in anyplace for any giving excuses, narcotic production rises exponentially for weakening locals with addiction and also to fund clandestine operations, Examples: Britain opium wars in China, golden triangle heroin trade during Vietnam war, cocaine trade during contra wars in Central America and now opium trade in Afghanistan which is heading toward same conclusion as previous mentioned wars, foreign troops will go home eventually without a win but never the less with total waste of blood and treasure on both side, what a waste!