Commander of Sistan and Baluchestan Border Guards Colonel Mohammad Mollashahi said on Monday that some 834 kilograms of illicit drugs were seized in two separate operations in the province.
Some 505 kilograms of opium were confiscated last night when the police force entered a gun battle with a gang attempting to smuggle the drugs into the country through the southern border, he said.
According to Mollashahi, the smugglers escaped using the darkness of the night.
Following a series of intelligence operations, 304 kilograms hashish and 30 kilograms opium were seized in another operation, he said.
Three smugglers have been arrested in this regard and handed over to the judicial officials and two vehicles along with a number of different weapons were captured, he added.
Over 20 tons of different illicit drugs were captured in Sistan and Baluchestan province during the past month.
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.
MNA/ 4843088
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