A drug haul worth more than Dh4 billion seized in the Italian port city of Naples has been linked to the regime of Syrian President Bashar Al Assad.
Authorities in Italy earlier said the shipment of Captagon, said to be the world’s largest, had been made by ISIS to fund terrorism.
Previous hauls of the amphetamine derivative discovered in Greece, Italy and elsewhere were linked to the terrorist group. But tell-tale signs from the raid – and the quantity found – point to the involvement of the Assad regime, reported The Sunday Times.
A Syrian businessman with knowledge of the country’s paper industry told the British newspaper the 84 million tablets of Captagon had been hidden inside paper rolls that would have required industrial machinery to make, equipment to which ISIS did not have access.
The German publication Der Spiegel reported the pills were made in an area south of Syria's principal port, Latakia, in a factory owned by President Assad's uncle. They were then packaged in Aleppo in a paper plant in the city.
The factory has denied any involvement with the shipment found in Italy. A representative said it had opened too recently to become part of a drug smuggling plot.
But a promotional video for the plant shows it manufactures the same type of cylinders as those discovered in Naples.
Police in Italy conceded that ISIS could have been involved in the smuggling operation but the pills made elsewhere. It is unclear whether ISIS itself ever produced the substance.
Captagon, a street name for the drug fenethylline, has long been popular in the Middle East. It creates euphoria and suppresses tiredness, and has been used by ISIS fighters on the battlefield.
Captagon was found in the bodies of the attackers who killed 130 people in the French capital in November 2015. ISIS-affiliated groups such as Boko Haram in Nigeria have also used the stimulant.
The shipment seized in Naples last week is not the first drug haul to have originated in Latakia. Captagon and other drugs have been intercepted across the Middle East and Mediterranean, often after departing the Syrian port.
Last year Greek authorities seized 60 pallets filled with Captagon pills in Piraeus after a tip-off from the US Drug Enforcement Administration.
The Greek press reported that documents seized by narcotics agents showed the cargo had been loaded in Latakia.
Previous drug busts of substances including the opiate tramadol have uncovered an intricate web stretching around the globe that links extremism with drug smugglers and other organised crime.
Authorities in Italy and the size of the haul have indicated the involvement of the Camorra organised crime syndicate, which operates a vast criminal enterprise in Naples and surrounding Campania.
The Hezbollah militia in Lebanon, one of the Assad regime’s closest allies, has been deeply implanted within the global drug-smuggling network for decades and analysts have questioned whether the armed group had invested in Captagon.
Iran, a close backer of both the Syrian regime and Hezbollah, also leased part of Latakia in 2019.
The Assad family itself has been implicated in drugs smuggling in the past. In April, in Egypt, officials uncovered hashish secreted in milk cartons produced by a business owned by Rami Makhlouf, one of Mr Assad’s cousins. The billionaire and the Syrian president have subsequently had a public parting of ways.
Captagon has been manufactured in the Middle East for decades. Syrian chemists, training in Bulgaria during the Cold War, produced the drug for export. They returned from the Soviet state and used their expertise in Aleppo and Damascus.
The specs
Price, base / as tested Dh100,000 (estimate)
Engine 2.4L four-cylinder
Gearbox Nine-speed automatic
Power 184bhp at 6,400rpm
Torque 237Nm at 3,900rpm
Fuel economy, combined 9.4L/100km
The Vile
Starring: Bdoor Mohammad, Jasem Alkharraz, Iman Tarik, Sarah Taibah
Director: Majid Al Ansari
Rating: 4/5
Wicked: For Good
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Ethan Slater
Rating: 4/5
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The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
PAST 10 BRITISH GRAND PRIX WINNERS
2016 - Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
2015 - Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
2014 - Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
2013 - Nico Rosberg (Mercedes-GP)
2012 - Mark Webber (Red Bull Racing)
2011 - Fernando Alonso (Ferrari)
2010 - Mark Webber (Red Bull Racing)
2009 - Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull Racing)
2008 - Lewis Hamilton (McLaren)
2007 - Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari)
Britain's travel restrictions
- A negative test 2 days before flying
- Complete passenger locator form
- Book a post-arrival PCR test
- Double-vaccinated must self-isolate
- 11 countries on red list quarantine
Museum of the Future in numbers
- 78 metres is the height of the museum
- 30,000 square metres is its total area
- 17,000 square metres is the length of the stainless steel facade
- 14 kilometres is the length of LED lights used on the facade
- 1,024 individual pieces make up the exterior
- 7 floors in all, with one for administrative offices
- 2,400 diagonally intersecting steel members frame the torus shape
- 100 species of trees and plants dot the gardens
- Dh145 is the price of a ticket
Stormy seas
Weather warnings show that Storm Eunice is soon to make landfall. The videographer and I are scrambling to return to the other side of the Channel before it does. As we race to the port of Calais, I see miles of wire fencing topped with barbed wire all around it, a silent ‘Keep Out’ sign for those who, unlike us, aren’t lucky enough to have the right to move freely and safely across borders.
We set sail on a giant ferry whose length dwarfs the dinghies migrants use by nearly a 100 times. Despite the windy rain lashing at the portholes, we arrive safely in Dover; grateful but acutely aware of the miserable conditions the people we’ve left behind are in and of the privilege of choice.
'The Batman'
Stars:Robert Pattinson
Director:Matt Reeves
Rating: 5/5
Smart words at Make Smart Cool
Make Smart Cool is not your usual festival. Dubbed “edutainment” by organisers Najahi Events, Make Smart Cool aims to inspire its youthful target audience through a mix of interactive presentation by social media influencers and a concert finale featuring Example with DJ Wire. Here are some of the speakers sharing their inspiration and experiences on the night.
Prince Ea
With his social media videos accumulating more half a billion views, the American motivational speaker is hot on the college circuit in the US, with talks that focus on the many ways to generate passion and motivation when it comes to learning.
Khalid Al Ameri
The Emirati columnist and presenter is much loved by local youth, with writings and presentations about education, entrepreneurship and family balance. His lectures on career and personal development are sought after by the education and business sector.
Ben Ouattara
Born to an Ivorian father and German mother, the Dubai-based fitness instructor and motivational speaker is all about conquering fears and insecurities. His talk focuses on the need to gain emotional and physical fitness when facing life’s challenges. As well managing his film production company, Ouattara is one of the official ambassadors of Dubai Expo2020.
'Morbius'
Director: Daniel Espinosa
Stars: Jared Leto, Matt Smith, Adria Arjona
Rating: 2/5
'Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore'
Rating: 3/5
Directed by: David Yates
Starring: Mads Mikkelson, Eddie Redmayne, Ezra Miller, Jude Law
Company profile
Name: Infinite8
Based: Dubai
Launch year: 2017
Number of employees: 90
Sector: Online gaming industry
Funding: $1.2m from a UAE angel investor
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Power: 110 horsepower
Torque: 147Nm
Price: From Dh59,700
On sale: now
UAE Falcons
Carly Lewis (captain), Emily Fensome, Kelly Loy, Isabel Affley, Jessica Cronin, Jemma Eley, Jenna Guy, Kate Lewis, Megan Polley, Charlie Preston, Becki Quigley and Sophie Siffre. Deb Jones and Lucia Sdao – coach and assistant coach.
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Correspondents
By Tim Murphy
(Grove Press)
