The drug ‘captagon,’ known as the “cocaine of the poor,” provided billions of dollars in profits annually for the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. VOA correspondent Joan Cabasés Vega reports that now, the rebels who overthrew him from power have dismantled the state-run factories that produced the drug. They have pledged to completely destroy what they call Assad’s drug empire.
About 20 kilometers northeast of Damascus, the road leads to the remote area of Douma, where one of the factories is located.
The factory, which once produced potato chips, was repurposed by President Bashar al-Assad’s regime to manufacture ‘captagon,’ the drug often referred to as the “cocaine of the poor.”
“Assad’s clan was the largest drug producer in the world,” says Basel, a rebel from the “Hayat Tahrir al-Sham” group, who declined to give his last name. This rebel group overthrew Assad and is now in power.
Inside several electrical boxes, he uncovers hidden reserves of the drug, which has similarities to amphetamines, ready for export.
“All the captagon hidden here is the responsibility of Maher al-Assad, Bashar’s brother. They hid the drug inside these electrical devices. They usually inserted up to two kilograms of captagon into each device and then sent them to different parts of the world.”
Experts say that the trade in ‘captagon’ became an important method for securing revenue for Assad’s regime, helping to mitigate the impact of international sanctions. This drug trade reportedly generated about 2.4 billion dollars in profit annually for the Assad family, according to the New Lines Institute.
In the factory, tools and chemicals used to produce ‘captagon’ are still visible. Boxes filled with the drug are scattered everywhere, alongside packaging materials used to mask the drug trade. ‘Captagon’ was often smuggled inside orange juice cartons, electronic components, and even high-quality furniture.
The rebels say the workers set the factory on fire before leaving, likely in an attempt to destroy the evidence. They claim to have discovered up to 160 similar factories across Syria. They also found documents detailing the trade activity, including data on buyers, with names of countries, companies, and individuals listed. In 2023, the British government estimated that 80 percent of the world’s supply of ‘captagon’ came from Syria.
Now, the rebels from the ‘Hayat Tahrir al-Sham’ group say the time has come to put an end to drug production in the country. They assert that selling drugs to finance activities does not align with their values.
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