Amman - (AFP) - The Jordanian security authorities announced in a statement on Sunday that they thwarted a drug smuggling operation coming from Iraqi territory and seized the equivalent of 1,000 kilograms of Captagon pills, which were hidden in two trucks carrying date paste.

The statement quoted a source in the customs department operating at the Al-Karama Border Center with Iraq, as saying, "Jordanian customs cadres, in cooperation with the security services, thwarted the largest and largest drug smuggling operation of six million pills of Captagon, equivalent to a thousand kilograms."

He added, "After a careful inspection of two refrigerated trucks carrying foreign plates, the grains were found hidden within a shipment of cartons containing date paste."

The source explained that "about 509 kg of Captagon pills were found in the first truck and about 483 kg of Captagon in the second truck."

The statement quoted the Director General of Jordanian Customs, Maj. Gen. Jalal Al-Qudah, as saying, "Customs and security agencies are working with all their capabilities to dry up the sources of entry of drugs by strengthening their control at the border crossings and striking the dens of poison dealers and promoters."

Smuggling drugs from Iraq to the Kingdom is rare, and drugs usually come through Syrian territory.

And on February 17, the Jordanian army announced that attempts to smuggle drugs across the Syrian-Jordanian border, which extends for about 375 km, a large number of which have been thwarted in recent months, have become an "organization" that uses drones and is protected by armed groups.

The army said at the time that the Jordanian authorities thwarted, within about 45 days at the beginning of the year, the entry of more than 16 million Captagon pills, equivalent to the quantity that was seized throughout the year 2021.

The Kingdom confirms that 85 percent of the drugs seized are intended for smuggling out of Jordan, especially south to Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states.

The Captagon industry is not new in the region, and Syria has been the most prominent source of this substance since before the outbreak of the war in 2011. However, the conflict made its manufacture more popular, used and exported. Captagon pill factories are also active in several areas in neighboring Lebanon.

The Gulf countries, especially Saudi Arabia, are the main destination for Captagon pills, which is an easy-to-manufacture drug. Classified by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime as a “stimulant amphetamine,” it is usually a mixture of amphetamines, caffeine, and other substances.