Syrian militants taking stimulants to stay on feet

Foreign-backed militants in Syria are taking amphetamine stimulants to stay on their feet in exhausting battles against government forces, reports say.

Investigations by various media outlets have found that drug dealers in Syria earned millions of dollars last year from the growing trade in amphetamines.

And some of the funds were reportedly being used by militant groups to fund weapons purchases.

Al-Qaeda linked groups are also said to be using stimulant drugs extensively as they launch many attacks at night and are engaged in exhausting battles.

Lebanese psychiatrist Ramzi Haddad said the drug “gives you a kind of euphoria. You’re talkative, you don’t sleep, you don’t eat, you’re energetic.”

A British defense study showed last year that about 100,000 militants, fragmented into 1,000 groups, were fighting in Syria against the government and people.

The extracts of the study by defense consultancy IHS Jane’s were published on September 16, 2013, revealing that some 10,000 militants were fighting for groups affiliated with al-Qaeda and the rest fighting for different militant groups.

According to the analysis, a large number of extremists from foreign countries are also active in Syria.

Syria has been gripped by a deadly conflict since 2011. According to the reports, the Western powers and their regional allies — especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey — are supporting the militants operating inside Syria.

According to the United Nations, more than 100,000 people have been killed and a total of 7.8 million of others displaced due to the violence.