DUBAI // About three times more crystal methamphetamine has been seized in the first five months of this year than in the whole of last year, officials said yesterday.
Dubai police took in more than 122kg of the highly addictive drug between January and May this year, compared with 41kg in all of 2010.
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In the same period, authorities seized a total of about 230kg of drugs, including almost 36,000 amphetamine pills.
Police hailed the drug hauls as victories against traffickers.
"The success we have in foiling drug trafficking and sales in the country and outside is due to the strict guidelines and goals set by Dubai Police Chief Lt Gen Dahi Khalfan," said Maj Gen Abdel Jalil Mehdi, director of the Dubai Police anti-narcotics department. "Strict instructions delivered from the police chief dictate that no narcotics-related case is to be taken lightly. A highly qualified team of officers and unlimited logistics support, as well as a wide net of international relations, have helped us this year."
After crystal meth, the most-common drug seized was heroin (74kg), cocaine (18kg), hashish, marijuana and opium.
But officials said that the dramatic rise in methamphetamine seizures was a symptom of the growing popularity of synthetic drugs worldwide.
"The international drug consumption trend has moved from traditional drugs like cocaine, heroin and marijuana towards amphetamines and methamphetamine," said Mohammed Al Merri, executive director of cargo operations at Dubai Customs.
The popularity of amphetamines has grown across the GCC for the second year in a row, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) world drug report for 2011.
Officials said the Middle East accounted for almost two-thirds of the world's total amphetamines seizures for 2008 and 2009 - or more than 34 tonnes. Advances in the science of narcotic production and the availability of recipes online has made it easy for these drugs to be created and circulated, said Faisal Hijazi, a programme director at the United Nations office in Cairo.
"The enhanced effects to the user delivered by synthetic drugs such as amphetamines and their cheapness have contributed in a global increase in the consumption of such narcotics," he said.
Mr Hijazi warned that Arab countries were being specifically targeted for the distribution of amphetamine-based drugs. He said the problem could get out of control if unchecked.
UNODC chief Antonio Maria Costa has also warned of surging production and abuse of synthetic drugs in the Middle East, as traffickers looked beyond their traditional western markets.
"These new drugs cause a double problem," Mr Costa said. "First, they are being developed at a much faster rate than regulatory norms and law enforcement can keep up. Second, their marketing is cunningly clever, as they are custom-manufactured so as to meet the specific preference in each situation."
The UAE's legal system specifies harsh punishments for trading in amphetamines and methamphetamines. In 2010, a Filipino was sentenced to life in prison for attempting to sell 0.16 grams of crystal meth to undercover officers.
"We will prosecute any individual to the full extent of the law who consumes or peddles in synthetic drugs," Dubai chief narcotics prosecutor Waleed Al Fuqai said this year. "I stress and vow that we will be very stringent with illegal traffickers and smugglers of these drugs, and will also prosecute any person who consumes them without a medical reason."
amustafa@thenational.ae
TO A LAND UNKNOWN
Director: Mahdi Fleifel
Starring: Mahmoud Bakri, Aram Sabbah, Mohammad Alsurafa
Rating: 4.5/5
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
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Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
The biog
Hobby: Playing piano and drawing patterns
Best book: Awaken the Giant Within by Tony Robbins
Food of choice: Sushi
Favourite colour: Orange
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
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Three ways to get a gratitude glow
By committing to at least one of these daily, you can bring more gratitude into your life, says Ong.
- During your morning skincare routine, name five things you are thankful for about yourself.
- As you finish your skincare routine, look yourself in the eye and speak an affirmation, such as: “I am grateful for every part of me, including my ability to take care of my skin.”
- In the evening, take some deep breaths, notice how your skin feels, and listen for what your skin is grateful for.
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Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
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Real estate tokenisation project
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