EXCLUSIVE: Iran and UK united on war on drugs
source: http://bit.ly/htlnKC
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- Flare_Network
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London - The British and Iranian governments are often at odds about Tehran’s nuclear ambitions and alleged human rights abuses.
But when it comes to war on drugs, the two countries have put their differences aside to stop the stream of heroin that flows from Central Asia into Europe, a government source told Bright Magazine. More than 90 percent of the heroin sold in the UK is derived from Afghan opium.
Almost 30 percent of the heroin and half of the opiates produced in Afghanistan transit through Iranian borders, according to the latest United Nations World Drug Report. Millions of Iranian drug addicts consume about 15 percent of all the opiates smuggled into their country.
The UN Office on Drugs and Crimes (UNODC) and other international organisations have credited Iran with “holding back a flood of heroin”. Iran alone is responsible for nearly a quarter of global heroin seizures and 60 percent of all opiates.
The commitment against narcotics came with a high death toll attached. More than 3,700 Iranian policemen died in the last 30 years, and several thousands were wounded in the effort of patrolling the 2,300-mile-long eastern border that runs from Turkmenistan to Pakistan.
Drug traffickers are often better funded and equipped than the Iranian forces. In one occasion, the traffickers crossed the border with 400 armed vehicles equipped with machine guns and rocket launchers, and attacked a military outpost, slaughtering 31 officers.
Read more on Bright Magazine - www.brightmag.org
But when it comes to war on drugs, the two countries have put their differences aside to stop the stream of heroin that flows from Central Asia into Europe, a government source told Bright Magazine. More than 90 percent of the heroin sold in the UK is derived from Afghan opium.
Almost 30 percent of the heroin and half of the opiates produced in Afghanistan transit through Iranian borders, according to the latest United Nations World Drug Report. Millions of Iranian drug addicts consume about 15 percent of all the opiates smuggled into their country.
The UN Office on Drugs and Crimes (UNODC) and other international organisations have credited Iran with “holding back a flood of heroin”. Iran alone is responsible for nearly a quarter of global heroin seizures and 60 percent of all opiates.
The commitment against narcotics came with a high death toll attached. More than 3,700 Iranian policemen died in the last 30 years, and several thousands were wounded in the effort of patrolling the 2,300-mile-long eastern border that runs from Turkmenistan to Pakistan.
Drug traffickers are often better funded and equipped than the Iranian forces. In one occasion, the traffickers crossed the border with 400 armed vehicles equipped with machine guns and rocket launchers, and attacked a military outpost, slaughtering 31 officers.
Read more on Bright Magazine - www.brightmag.org
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- groups:
- News and Politics, Afghanistan News
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- tags:
- Iran, Afghanistan, United Kingdom, Drug Trafficking
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dreamsenvoy
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End the war on drugs...a war on human consciousness
- 1 year ago
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dreamsenvoy
