Second Brigadier General Mohammad Ghanbari, the Police Chief of Sistan and Baluchestan made the announcement, saying that following the intelligence activities, the anti-narcotics police forces of Saravan county have identified and dismantled a drug-trafficking band who had intended to transfer a big consignments of narcotics to the central parts of Iran from eastern borders.
In the operation carried out in Saravan, the police forces entered an armed conflict with the smugglers, during which they managed to bust 1,408 kilograms of illicit drugs and a number of rifles and ammunition, he added.
The busted consignment consisted of 1,336 kg of opium, 50 kg of hashish, 300 g of crystal, 100 g of heroin, and 20 kg of other kinds of drugs, he said.
Three smugglers have been arrested and one of them was killed during the operation, according to the police chief.
The Islamic Republic has been actively fighting drug-trafficking over the past three decades, despite its high economic and human costs. The war on drug trade originating from Afghanistan has claimed the lives of nearly 4,000 Iranian police officers over the past four decades. The country has spent more than hundreds of millions of dollars on sealing its borders and preventing the transit of narcotics destined for European, Arab, and Central Asian countries.
The issue of drugs is a global scourge and there is the need for wide-scale cooperation at the international level so as to tackle this problem. Therefore, the Islamic Republic of Iran has adopted an interactive approach with the global community concerning the issue of drugs and has virtually indicated that it spares no efforts in enhancing cooperation with other countries and international organizations in the campaign against illicit drugs.
On this basis, Iran has always voiced its resolve for countering illicit drugs and reducing its harms at the global level. Iran's performance in countering drug trafficking has been effective in maintaining the security of different regions of the globe.
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