Jordan destroys 12.8 million Captagon pills and other substances

 According to the General Security Directorate, 12.8 million pills of the illegal stimulant Captagon were destroyed by Jordanian authorities. It is the most recent example of government measures to stop the flow of drugs, which primarily originate from Syria.

The directorate announced the destruction as the outcome of tenacious operations against traffickers "around the kingdom" and published a photo of security agents placing bags in a furnace.

The statement, issued late on Wednesday, stated the police forces are working with the military and customs units to boost information and reconnaissance to stop "the introduction of these drugs and their movement through the kingdom".

According to the statement, the Captagon was destroyed together with 2.6 tonnes of hashish and three kilograms of cocaine connected to 43 narcotics cases.

The agency said that the seized materials were obliterated at 1,000oC in special furnaces.

In the past, Jordan has served as both a market and a route for the influx of hashish from the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon, which has strongholds for the militant organization Hezbollah, which is supported by Iran.

But, during the past five years, Captagon has emerged as the primary illicit drug in the Levant, with the Syrian regime's strongholds around Damascus and other locations serving as production hubs, according to Arab security sources.

Jordan agreed to a reconciliation with Damascus that was mediated by Moscow two years ago in part as a result of the flow of Captagon from Syria being largely stopped. However, the Captagon's movement shows little sign of slowing down, and Jordan started blaming the Syrian military and pro-Iranian militias operating near the border for the rise in narcotics smuggling last year.

Also, according to Jordanian officials, the military will react to infiltration attempts and drug trafficking inside Jordan more forcefully.

Earlier this month, the state media of Jordan said that in another armed encounter on the country's northern border with Syria's regime-held regions, Jordanian troops engaged Syrian drug smugglers and detained one of them.