Iran police engage drug smugglers in southeast, seize huge narcotics cargo

Iranian police forces engage in clashes with armed smugglers in the southeastern province of Sistan and Baluchestan, which borders Afghanistan and Pakistan, killing two of the bandits in the counter-narcotics operation.

General Doustali Jalilian, a local police official, said law enforcement units in the province were tipped off that smugglers were transferring a huge cargo of drugs in the mountainous regions of Sistan and Baluchestan.

As police arrived on the scene, the smugglers opened fire and tried to escape, but police commandoes returned fire and killed two of the traffickers on the spot. Other bandits abandoned their vehicles and fled into the rocky regions, he explained.

General Jalilian said two smugglers were arrested. Two vehicles as well as a cache of Kalashnikov weapons, ammunition and wireless devices were seized in the operation.

Meanwhile, police confiscated 1.8 tons of narcotics including opium and Hashish.

Iranian media said a member of the local security personnel was also killed in the skirmishes.

Iran has been one of the main conduits for illegal drugs, which mainly originate in Afghanistan and are destined for markets in Europe and in the Persian Gulf region.

Iran has long been at the forefront of the global fight against narcotics and drawn the praise of the United Nations and the entire global community for its successful campaign against drug trafficking.

Around 4,000 people have died in Iran’s fight against drug traffickers over the last four decades.

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