When talking about the situation in the Middle East, one may
invoke all sorts of social and economic problems, but the global drug crisis is
not usually on the list of the region’s pressing issues. This may change with
the rise in users and traffickers of Captagon.
اضافة اعلان
First manufactured in 1961, Captagon is a stimulant
originally intended to combat ADHD. Its ability to boost alertness and
aggression has made it the region’s favorite drug.
It may not be as stigmatized as cocaine, heroin, and
marijuana, but it still has long-term effects that include rapid weight loss,
hypertension, severe headaches, and increased heart rate. Users become
irritable and overly hostile, and prolonged and intense abuse can lead to
death.
The large quantities available at cheap prices will lead to
youth suffering and dying because of Captagon.
The root of the problem must be determined, because if the
fire is not put out now, it will spread and consume the nation. Illicit activity
thrives in periods of economic downturn and political instability. It is for
this reason that Lebanon was once the Middle East’s main producer of the drug,
as militias set up factories in the Bekaa Valley. When Lebanon’s authorities
began taking action, a new opportunity arose across the border in Syria, where
a deadly civil war broke out. Many of Lebanon’s smuggling veterans moved shop,
while the chaos and uncertainty of war brought Syrian actors, mainly pro-regime
but some opposition as well, into the game. Fighters from all sides use
Captagon to maintain focus and morale, but its main use to the warring factions
is the income it provides.
Loosely guarded borders and an increasingly globalized world
mean that Captagon can be smuggled throughout the region in droves.
The Arab Gulf states are by far the biggest consumers of the
drug, but if the Captagon route is the Silk Road, Jordan is its Baghdad.
Jordan’s long and porous border with Syria makes it a key
target for smugglers. In January 2022, Jordanian officials seized approximately
2.7 million Captagon pills at the Jaber-Nasib border crossing.
The root of the problem must be determined, because if the fire is not put out now, it will spread and consume the nation. Illicit activity thrives in periods of economic
Alarmingly, the struggle between those who defend our border
and smugglers has become violent; in that same month, border guards killed 27
smugglers attempting to enter Jordan under the cover of a snowstorm. Although
not on the same scale as Lebanon and Syria, Captagon production exists in
Jordan as well, as evidenced by the authorities shutting down a production
plant in 2018.
Jordan is a conduit toward the more lucrative market in the
Gulf, but it is a consumer as well. Estimates of the number of users are hard
to come by, due foremost to the stigma attached to the drug problem in an
Islamic society, but if hundreds of millions of pills are smuggled annually,
surely disenfranchised youth in Jordan consume the substance.
The Captagon issue, now more prominent than ever, is closely
related, in the Middle East, to political and economic problems, so solving
those is bound to reduce drug smuggling.
Syria’s status as a source of Captagon can be diminished
through the removal of sanctions. As the Syrian pound continues to plummet in
value, political actors must rely on illegal trade in the absence of robust
legal markets, and regular people may be forced to partake in the production of
drugs to avoid starvation and destitution.
Various examples from history show that sanctions harm the
citizens of a country far more than the regimes they purport to combat. As Iraq
starved in the 1990s, Saddam Hussein lived lavishly. This is also the case with
the Assad family, yet the same cannot be said about the average Syrian family
or small-time militias.
Switching the strategy to firm and targeted sanctions
against certain officials, rather than a wholesale blockade of Syria and
everything Syrian, would most likely stem the growth of Captagon production and
use.
But as one Syrian journalist writing for Jordan News put it,
“these countries should come together and find a more reliable solution to
countering Syria’s drugs, and that likely starts at home”.
Study after study has found that individuals develop drug
addictions in order to get rid of feelings of emptiness and stress in their
lives. Jordan’s economic stagnation and serious unemployment rates are bound to
push young people into depression and anxiety, so it is clear that fixing the
broken economy will address the issue of addiction across the nation.
Most importantly, though, is acknowledging the problem.
The society should not find it taboo to talk about mental
health issues, addiction and rehabilitation.
It is difficult to tackle the issue of Captagon, mainly
because of its scale. To solve a multi-faceted problem, there is need of a
multi-faceted approach. Dealing with the issue will involve political
negotiation, economic policy, robust security measures and a greater emphasis
on the well-being of the population.
War, an experience far too common in the Middle East, kills
people physically, but drugs, a newer phenomenon here, kills the spirit.
Mohammad Rasoul Kailani is a writer and first year student
at the University of Toronto. Amongst various other topics, his interests are
in Middle Eastern affairs.
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