One Jordanian soldier was killed and one other injured in shootout close to border with Syria.
Jordan’s military has stated that it killed a number of drug smugglers close to the Syrian border, cracking down on the commerce of the extremely addictive drug Captagon.
The amphetamine-like stimulant is mass-produced in Syria and channelled by means of Jordan into the Gulf states. It’s thought to generate billions of {dollars} for Syria’s authorities and Iran-aligned militias that management swaths of southern Syria.
Dozens of drug runners crossed the Syrian border on Tuesday, shrouded in dense fog which lowered visibility, and fired at Jordanian border guards, Jordan’s military stated in a statement. One Jordanian officer and “several” drug sellers have been killed within the shootout, the military stated. One soldier was injured.
Many sellers reportedly escaped again into Syria, which shares a 370km (230-mile) largely desert border with Jordan.
“We act forcefully to protect our borders and prevent any attempt to undermine our national security,” the Jordanian military assertion stated.
The military didn’t specify the place precisely the breach occurred, however Syrian sources instructed the Reuters information company that the incident occurred northeast of the town of Mafraq in Jordan.
Transit to the Gulf
The border conflict comes only a week after three different smugglers have been shot useless whereas making an attempt to visitors giant portions of Captagon tablets into Jordan.
Smugglers typically sneak the medication into Jordan in transit to rich Gulf states, which gasoline many of the enterprise, in keeping with Western narcotics management officers.
Jordanian officers echo Western claims that Lebanon’s Hezbollah group and different Iran-allied militias are behind the smuggling networks, accusations Hezbollah denies.
Jordan has additionally raised considerations in regards to the drug commerce with Syrian authorities and their ally Russia, they are saying.
However Syria’s authorities denies involvement and says it’s doing its finest to cease the drug commerce.
The US, in the meantime, has promised to ship extra navy help to spice up Jordan’s border safety, Jordanian officers stated, including to greater than $1bn Washington has offered since Syria’s battle broke out in 2011.
Nevertheless, impatient over what it says are damaged guarantees to curb the commerce, Jordan took issues into its personal fingers earlier this yr, waging a number of strikes in opposition to Iran-linked drug factories in Syrian territory, native and Western intelligence sources stated, in keeping with Reuters.
Officers count on the smuggling runs into Jordan to spike as winter units in, as poorer visibility makes it simpler for traffickers to maneuver undetected.
