Maghreb Edition

Morocco: Two million captagon pills seized in port of TangierF

Posted On 5 November 2022

Number of times this article was read : 870
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Moroccan authorities Friday seized more than two million amphetamine-type captagon pills, foiling an “international trafficking attempt” to West Africa, police said. The pills were found at the Tanger Med industrial port complex on the kingdom’s northern coast, the DGSN security service said in a statement. The drugs were “concealed inside a goods container onboard a maritime transport ship” headed from Lebanon to West Africa, it added, without specifying which country.

Searches “led to the discovery and seizure of psychotropic substances hidden inside barrels containing consumer products”, according to the DGSN, which said authorities seized “2,018,500 captagon tablets”. An investigation has been launched in the coastal city of Tangier.

Trade of the stimulant has skyrocketed in recent years, mostly originating in Lebanon and Syria, where a multi-billion-dollar industry has made the drug the war-torn country’s largest export. Lebanese authorities have recently ramped up  efforts to counter captagon production and trafficking after backlash from conservative Gulf nations.

AFP

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The North Africa Journal is a leading English-language publication focused on North Africa. The Journal covers primarily the Maghreb region and expands its general coverage to the Sahel, Egypt, and beyond, when events in those regions affect the broader North Africa geography. The Journal does not have any affiliation with any institution and has been independent since its founding in 1996. Our position is to always bring our best analysis of events affecting the region, and remain as neutral as humanly possible. Our coverage is not limited to one single topic, but ranges from economic and political affairs, to security, defense, social and environmental issues. We rely on our full staff analysts and editors to bring you best-in-class analysis. We also work with sister company MEA Risk LLC, to leverage the presence on the ground of a solid network of contributors and experts. Information on MEA Risk can be found at www.MEA-Risk.com.