The Middle East Drug Fueling War, Crime and All-Night Parties – WSJ

AMMAN, Jordan Another urgent conflict in the Middle East is playing out on the border between Syria and Jordan: a war against captagon, an amphetamine-like drug that s taken off across the region.

The drug cuts across social class and borders. It s used by taxi drivers handling late-night shifts, militia fighters looking to induce courage, students studying for exams, and high-powered executives wanting to work, or party, long hours.

It s all added up to a multibillion-dollar drug trade that is fueling more conflict in the region. Money from drug smuggling has lined the pockets of Iran-backed militias, including Hezbollah, which has spent vast amounts of its proceeds on weapons to fight Israel. The drug props up Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, whose regime has become one of the world s biggest drug syndicates, helping it offset years of punishing Western economic sanctions.

Syria has denied any involvement in the drug trade.

via www.wsj.com