Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 13
By Fatih Karimov- Trend:
Iran's police seized about 440 kilograms of various drugs from armed smugglers in the country's south eastern province of Sistan and Baluchestan.
In an armed conflict with armed smugglers near the city of Iranshar, police seized 440 kilograms of opium from the smugglers, Iranshahr Police Chief Doustali Jalilian said.
The two smugglers left the drug consignment inside their car and escaped, Jalilian said, the official website of the Iranian police reported.
Iran is situated on a major drug route between Afghanistan and Europe, as well as the Persian Gulf states. The Islamic Republic shares about 900 kilometers of common border with Afghanistan, over which 74 percent of opium is smuggled.
It was reported that some 490 tons of drugs were seized in the country during the last fiscal year (ended on March 20).
The fight against drug trafficking annually costs Iran about $1 billion, according to the official estimates. The statistics also say there are about two million drug users in Iran.