The Police chief of Sistan and Baluchistan province, Second Brigadier General Ahmad Taheri made the announcement on Saturday, saying that following extensive intelligence operations, the police forces of Sistan and Baluchestan province were informed of the activities of members of a large drug trafficking gang in Dalgan County.
After several days of intelligence activities and identifying the possible location of the traffickers, the police forces of Iranshahr city, with the operational guidance and support of the province's anti-narcotics police, controlled and blocked their traffic routes, he added.
Taheri noted that the smugglers, who were trying to transfer the consignment of opium to the central provinces of the country, tried to escape quickly when they were caught in an ambush by the provincial police forces.
He said that 1,200 kilograms of opium have been seized during an armed clash between the police and the smugglers, adding that one smuggler has been killed during the operation.
According to the police chief, some weapons and ammunition have been confiscated in the operation by police forces.
Iran, which has a 900-kilometre common border with Afghanistan, has been used as the main conduit for smuggling Afghan drugs to narcotics kingpins in Europe.
The country is at the forefront of the fight against drug trafficking and thousands of Iranian forces have been so far martyred to protect the world from the danger of drugs. Despite high economic and human costs, the Islamic Republic has been actively fighting drug trafficking over the past decades.
Iran has spent more than $700 million on sealing its borders and preventing the transit of narcotics destined for European, Arab, and Central Asian countries.
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