130 Tons of Narcotics Seized in Iran’s Southeast in 9 Months

Governor of southeastern Iranian province of Sistan and Balouchestan said the province’s law enforcement and military forces have seized some 130,000 kilograms of illicit drugs in the past 9 months.

Since the beginning of the current Iranian year (March 20, 2015), 130 tons of different kinds of narcotics have been seized in Sistan and Balouchestan, Ali Osat Hashemi.

He added that it shows a 59-percent rise in discovery and seizure of drugs in the province compared to the same period last year.

Iran, which has a 900-kilometer common border with Afghanistan, has been used as the main conduit for smuggling Afghan drugs to narcotics kingpins in Europe.

Despite high economic and human costs, the Islamic Republic has been actively fighting drug trafficking over the past three decades.

The country has spent more than USD 700 million on sealing its borders and preventing the transit of narcotics destined for European, Arab and Central Asian countries.

The war on drug trade originating from Afghanistan has claimed the lives of nearly 4,000 Iranian police officers over the past 34 years.