Latest news with #UnitedNationsOfficeonDrugsandCrime
Shafaq News
9 hours ago
- Politics
- Shafaq News
Iraq-Syria operation targets major captagon network in Damascus
Shafaq News – Basra Iraq's Interior Minister Abdul Amir al-Shammari announced on Wednesday the dismantling of a major international drug trafficking network operating inside Syria. Speaking at a press conference in Basra, al-Shammari said the operation was coordinated with Syrian authorities and led to the seizure of over 1.35 million Captagon pills and the arrest of members of a trafficking cell active in Syrian territory. 'The suspects were apprehended inside Syria, and the drugs were confiscated during the mission.' 'This operation is a model of regional cooperation,' the ministry said in its statement, 'and represents a decisive step in protecting Iraq and neighboring countries from the dangers of transnational drug networks.' Iraq shares a 600-kilometer border with Syria, where, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), over 80 percent of the world's Captagon supply is produced. UNODC figures show Iraq seized more than 24 million Captagon tablets in 2023 alone—an increase of 3,300% since 2019. The pills, which contain amphetamine-based stimulants, are often trafficked from southern Syria through western Iraqi provinces such as Al-Anbar and Nineveh, before being smuggled toward Gulf markets.
Telegraph
6 days ago
- Health
- Telegraph
Poor regulation causing hundreds of deaths from contaminated medicines globally, says WHO report
Weak regulation has allowed children's medicines like cough syrup and paracetamol to be laced with toxic industrial chemicals leading to hundreds of deaths, according to a report by the World Health Organization. Since 2022, at least 300 people – mainly children in Africa and Asia – have died from cough and paracetamol syrups containing diethylene glycol (DEG) and ethylene glycol (EG): industrial chemicals that are used to make products like brake fluid and antifreeze. The chemicals – a cheap replacement for medicinal glycol – are toxic in even small amounts and cause acute kidney damage that often proves fatal. The WHO report, released jointly with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, said 'criminal networks' were exploiting 'market volatility and regulatory gaps' to introduce these and other toxins into the supply chain in order to make quick profits. 'Most of the recent cases involve inexpensive oral liquid medicines that can be bought without a prescription,' said the report. 'In most cases these medicines were marketed specifically for children and are … available in pharmacies, medicine stores or informal street markets.' In 2022, more than 150 children died in Indonesia from consuming locally produced cough syrups that had been laced with EG. The manufacturer had marked 60,000 bottles of the lethal medication with fake labels showing only safe ingredients, the report said. In the same year, at least 66 children, mostly under the age of two, died in the Gambia from acute kidney failure after consuming cough syrup containing DEG and EG, imported from India. The medicines were produced by the Indian manufacturer, Maiden Pharmaceuticals, which was later discovered to have breached numerous regulations. Two of the owners of the company received prison sentences, the report said. Over the last three years, at least five batches of lethal cough syrups have been traced back to Indian manufacturers from countries including Uzbekistan, Cameroon, and Iraq. Some were found to contain over 20 times the safe level of EG . Each contaminated medicine was produced by a different manufacturer, raising questions about the regulation of India's pharmaceutical industry. Overall, the World Health Organization said at least 1,300 people have died as a direct cause of ingesting contaminated medicines over the last 90 years, and thousands more have suffered 'life changing injuries' – mostly in the developing world. 'In many cases, contaminated medicines are the result of intentional criminal conduct. Addressing this threat requires coordinated efforts by ... law enforcement agencies, customs officials, prosecutors and anti-corruption bodies,' the report said.
The Star
6 days ago
- The Star
Cocaine smugglers nabbed in Bali
Authorities said they have arrested two foreigners accused of smuggling cocaine to the tourist island of Bali. A Brazilian man and a South African woman were arrested separately on July 13 after customs officers at Bali's international airport saw suspicious items in the man's luggage and the woman's underwear on X-ray scans. Indonesia has extremely strict drug laws, and convicted smugglers are sometimes executed by firing squad. The 25-year-old Brazilian man, who police identified by his initials as YB, was arrested with 3,086.36g (6.8 pounds) of cocaine in the lining of his suitcase and backpack shortly after he arrived at the airport from Dubai, said Made Sinar Subawa, head of the Eradication Division at Bali's Narcotic Agency. The same day, customs officers caught a 32-year-old South African woman, identified as LN, and seized 990.83g (2.1 pounds) of cocaine she hid in her underwear, Subawa said. During interrogation, YB said that he was promised 400 million rupiah (RM103,720) to hand the cocaine he obtained in Brasilia to a man he called as Tio Paulo, while LN expected to get 25 million rupiah (RM6,482) after deliver the drugs to someone she identified as Cindy, according to Subawa. Subawa said a police operation failed to catch the two people named by the suspects, whom police believe are low-level distributors. Authorities presented the suspects wearing orange prison uniforms and masks, with their hands handcuffed, at a news conference in Denpasar, the capital, along with the cocaine they were found with. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime says Indonesia is a major drug-smuggling hub despite having some of the strictest drug laws in the world, in part because international drug syndicates target its young population. The Denpasar District Court was set to sentence two other groups of foreigners on drug charges. Verdicts for an Argentine woman and a British man who were accused of smuggling cocaine onto the island, and for a drug offence against a group of three British nationals, including a woman, are expected to be read out separately at the same court. About 530 people are on death row in Indonesia, mostly for drug-related crimes, including 96 foreigners, the Ministry of Immigration and Corrections' data showed. Indonesia's last executions, of a citizen and three foreigners, were carried out in July 2016. — AP
7 days ago
Indonesia arrests 2 foreigners for smuggling cocaine to Bali
DENPASAR, Indonesia -- Indonesian authorities said Thursday they have arrested two foreigners accused of smuggling cocaine to the tourist island of Bali. A Brazilian man and a South African woman were arrested separately on July 13 after customs officers at Bali's international airport saw suspicious items in the man's luggage and the woman's underwear on X-ray scans. Indonesia has extremely strict drug laws, and convicted smugglers are sometimes executed by firing squad. The 25-year-old Brazilian man, who police identified by his initials as YB, was arrested with 3,086.36 grams (6.8 pounds) of cocaine in the lining of his suitcase and backpack shortly after he arrived at the airport from Dubai, said Made Sinar Subawa, head of the Eradication Division at Bali's Narcotic Agency. The same day, customs officers caught a 32-year-old South African woman, identified as LN, and seized 990.83 grams (2.1 pounds) of cocaine she in her underwear, Subawa said. During interrogation, YB said that he was promised 400 million rupiah ($2,450) to hand the cocaine he obtained in Brasilia to a man he called as Tio Paulo, while LN expected to get 25 million rupiah ($1,500) after deliver the drugs to someone she identified as Cindy, according to Subawa. Subawa said a police operation failed to catch the two people named by the suspects, whom police believee are low-level distributors. Authorities presented the suspects wearing orange prison uniforms and masks, with their hands handcuffed, at a news conference in Denpasar, the capital, along with the cocaine they were found with. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime says Indonesia is a major drug-smuggling hub despite having some of the strictest drug laws in the world, in part because international drug syndicates target its young population. The Denpasar District Court later Thursday is set to sentence two other groups of foreigners on drug charges. Verdicts for an Argentine woman and a British man who were accused of smuggling cocaine onto the island, and for drug offense against a group of three British nationals, including a woman, are expected to be read out separately at the same court. About 530 people are on death row in Indonesia, mostly for drug-related crimes, including 96 foreigners, the Ministry of Immigration and Corrections' data showed. Indonesia's last executions, of a citizen and three foreigners, were carried out in July 2016.
Daily Maverick
16-07-2025
- Politics
- Daily Maverick
Piracy decline sparks wave of kidnappings in the Bight of Biafra
A decline in piracy has pushed criminals towards hostage-taking, creating a growing ransom economy in the ocean region from Nigeria to Gabon. Nigerian pirates kidnapped two government officials in Idabato, a Cameroonian border town in the Bakassi Peninsula, on 1 October 2024. One hostage, Ewane Roland Ekeh, was released on 17 March – after six months in captivity in Nigeria. The second, Etongo Ismael, remains in captivity. Since 2021, counterpiracy measures have been in place in the Bight of Biafra (or Bight of Bonny), an ocean region stretching from the Niger River mouth in Nigeria to Cape Lopez in Gabon. This has seen an overall decline in maritime piracy crime, compelling pirates to find alternative criminal activities to support themselves. They have focused primarily on hostage-taking for ransom, the crime to which Ekeh and Etongo fell victim. A rise in hostage-taking incidents in the Bight of Biafra since October 2023 can be associated with its proximity to the Niger Delta, the epicentre of maritime crime in the region, where waters are largely ungoverned. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime has reported the presence of Nigerian pirate camps in border areas near Cameroon. This was confirmed by Cameroon's Delta Rapid Intervention Battalion (RIB) commander Colonel Ndikum Azieh, who said there were nine active Nigerian pirate groups operating in the Bakassi Peninsula. Former captives and Cameroonian soldiers told the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) anonymously that the factions operating in the peninsula had established bases near Apka Irok – a Nigerian fishing village across from Kombo a Bedimo, Cameroon. Niger Delta and Bakassi Peninsula These groups have well-developed hierarchical organisational structures. One group, comprising nearly 270 fighters and led by a 'Border King', is organised into nine operational units of about 30 men each, each overseen by a 'general'. These Nigerian groups are known to operate well beyond their home bases, extending their reach to far-off waters, including those of Equatorial Guinea, São Tomé and Príncipe, and Gabon. When not actively engaged in pirating activities, they abduct locals in mangrove regions and on land. Azieh said pirates adapted their tactics based on their targets. For lower-value targets – described as village women and children – kidnappings can happen at any time, often timed after army patrols have passed through an area. For high-value targets, such as government officials, pirates gather intelligence and strike at night with swift boats and teams of about 10 armed with AK-47s or PKM 7.62 machine guns. The operations are usually completed within five minutes. A Bakassi Peninsula municipal official told ISS anonymously that hostages were taken to remote mangroves in Nigeria or fisheries in the peninsula, making escape difficult. This illicit industry generates substantial profits for criminal groups. Reports indicate that in Nigeria alone about $400,000 was paid in ransom to kidnappers between July 2022 and June 2023. The money is divided among various role players, including kingpins, sponsors, group leaders, negotiators, specialised team members, assault teams, camp guards and those providing onshore support. Kidnapping is traumatic for the victims and their families. Moreover, due to the persistent threat, many administrative officials, service personnel and civil servants only stay intermittently on the Bakassi Peninsula, while their families live elsewhere for safety. Thus, they are frequently absent from their official duties, affecting essential services. The kidnappings threaten both local and regional security. The area is a critical shipping zone and plays a vital role in the region's transportation of goods, fishing activities and extraction of hydrocarbon resources. As with local officials, security forces are reluctant to confront the pirates. In Nigeria, security forces sometimes lack essential resources, like fuel, hampering their ability to address piracy effectively. In Cameroon, particularly in towns like Idabato, the police and gendarmerie units are severely understaffed. Cameroon's South-West governor, Bernard Okalia Bilai, declared a total lockdown in the Bakassi Peninsula last October, but this angered local residents, who then couldn't earn a living, and elevated tensions between Nigerian and Cameroonian residents in the area. There is also an absence of effective cross-border cooperation at the tactical level. This is despite a robust political and strategic partnership established under the 2013 Yaoundé maritime security architecture, which created multinational centres for cooperation, and information and intelligence sharing. These security cooperation agreements have not cascaded to lower administrative and security units. RIB soldiers say they are unable to carry out operations against pirates who are often just across the border in Nigeria. While Nigeria has honed its negotiating skills with kidnappers and criminal networks, other countries in the region don't yet have the capacity to negotiate the release of hostages. For example, family sources say Ekeh's release took a while, despite attempts by the local negotiator and Cameroonian security forces. In 2022, Nigeria enacted a law against paying ransoms, while Cameroon insists it 'does not negotiate with terrorists'. However, the reality that ransoms have been paid for the release of Western hostages creates a perception of double standards and fosters feelings of abandonment and hopelessness among local hostages' families. Ekeh's family and local journalists told ISS that his family managed to raise $100,000 from local residents, relatives, colleagues and local elites to pay his ransom. Insecurity in the Bight of Biafra was recently heightened following an announcement by the Biafra Nations League (BNL) – a Nigerian secessionist armed group operating in northeastern Nigeria and the Bakassi Peninsula – that it was launching significant operations in the area. Faced with the continuation and possibly an increase in kidnapping for ransom by pirates and threats from the BNL, states along the Bight of Biafra must actively enforce existing bilateral and multilateral security arrangements. Ensuring these agreements are implemented at the level of local security and administrative units to allow for real-time cross-border security collaboration is imperative. Both policies and operations should aim to address a range of maritime crimes, such as piracy, sea robbery and kidnapping for ransom, akin to Nigeria's Deep Blue Project. Here a regional legal framework allowing for the right of pursuit or creating a combined maritime task force would help foster cooperation across different operational maritime and coastal zones. DM
