Drugs worth over $11 million seized in SW Pakistan

By Aamir Latif

KARACHI, Pakistan

Pakistan’s coastguards have seized over 1,000 kilograms (2204.62 pounds) of drugs from southwestern Balochistan province, an official statement said on Monday.

The coastguards, on a tip-off, raided a compound on the outskirts of strategic Gwadar town -- a key route to multi-billion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project -- and seized 1,010 kilograms of “fine-quality” hashish worth $11.4 million in the open market, the statement added.

A video released by Pakistan Coastguards office showed personnel standing behind a sack of “drug-filled” bags recovered during the raid. However, no arrest was reported.

The seized drugs were supposed to be smuggled into European market via sea route, the statement added.

This is the second largest drug recovery by the Pakistani authorities this year. In March, the coastguards had seized 8,000 kilograms (17,637 pounds) of drugs worth over $90 million in the open market.

With its 600-kilometers long coastline, Gwadar is a key deep seaport currently operated by China, which aims to attain direct access to Indian Ocean via this seaport.

According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Pakistan is the destination and transit country for approximately 40 percent of the opium produced in neighboring Afghanistan.

Mineral-rich Balochistan province, which borders Afghanistan and Iran, is said to be a key transit point for drug trafficking between the two countries. The route is also notorious for smuggling of Iranian petroleum products.

War-torn Afghanistan is the world's largest producer of illicit opium involving the country’s powerful warlords, and the militant groups, which use the drug money to arm their respective supporters despite the heavy presence of U.S.-led foreign forces for over 16 years.

Scores of small mobile laboratories have reportedly been operating in lawless Pak-Afghan border for opium processing, according to the UNODC.