He made the remarks on Mon. in a nationwide meeting of anti-narcotic police commanders.
He put the volume of narcotic drugs discovered in the past 10 months (from March 21 to Jan. 22) in the country at 700 tons, showing an 18 percent hike as compared to the last year’s corresponding period.
The issue of confronting and fighting against narcotic drugs is the main concern of people and the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, he said, adding, “fighting against drug is the first priority of the Leader in confronting social woes.”
Turning to the presence of American forces in the region and considerable 50fold hike for cultivating narcotic drug, Ashtari added, “we should not pin hope on other countries to help us in the field of combating against illicit drugs; rather, the fact that why American forces are not blamed for poppy cultivation should be addressed by the officials in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the international communities.”
He also called on judicial bodies to cooperate with the police forces in the fight against narcotics.
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