In bobby cars and co.

Children’s toys full of drugs discovered in Syria

(Bild: AFP)

In the port city of Latakia, Syria's new Islamist rulers have discovered a warehouse full of children's toys - at least at first glance: Because inside bobby cars and plastic tricycles were countless Captagon pills, which were Syria's most important export under Bashar al-Assad.

"We explored this area with warehouses near the port of Latakia. We also seized this warehouse, which belonged to the Fourth Division of Maher al-Assad's army. We found a huge amount of Captagon and numerous other drugs there," the news agency quotes a security official named Abu Rajan (see video above).

Syria under Assad the world's largest drug state
Maher al-Assad is the brother of ousted ruler Bashar al-Assad. The trade in the amphetamine-like Captagon had made Syria the largest drug state in the world. Captagon was produced in the Assad regime's drug kitchens to help the dictator and his clan become even richer: The pills are something like the "cocaine of the poor", the jihadist drug of the terrorist militia Hamas.

Inside bobby cars and plastic tricycles (pictured) were countless Captagon pills.(Bild: AFP)

"The drugs were prepared and packaged here in the warehouse. The Captagon was then transported to other countries via the port," he explains. According to him, around 50 to 60 million Captagon pills belonging to the Fourth Division were confiscated. "This is the largest stockpile of its kind in the area."

Largest customer is Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia is the largest market in the Middle East. Captagon is the party drug of the rich elite there and is far less taboo than alcohol. But it is also used by ordinary workers to keep up with the hellish pace of work.

Captagon was originally prescribed as a drug for narcolepsy (also known colloquially as sleeping sickness) and attention deficit disorder, among other things.