Syrian security forces discover drug warehouse linked to ousted Assad regime

LATAKIA, Syria

Security forces in Syria discovered a drug warehouse Sunday used by the ousted Assad regime for Captagon trafficking at a port in western Latakia.

Commander Abu Usama from the General Security Administration told Anadolu the warehouse was controlled by the Syrian Army's elite Fourth Division under Maher al-Assad, the brother of ousted regime leader Bashar al-Assad.

The Captagon pills were found hidden inside baby carriers, water pumps and electrical cables during the second day of port searches, Usama said.

The British government estimates that the Assad regime controlled 80% of the global production of Captagon, a highly addictive amphetamine-type stimulant, with world trade valued at $10 billion annually. The Assad family's annual profits were estimated at $2.4 billion.

This discovery follows a similar find on Saturday, when Anadolu documented one of the largest drug warehouses seized at the same port.

The revelations come as Syria's 61-year Baath regime's drug production centers continue to be exposed following its overthrow in December last year.