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Orumieh, West Azarbaijan Prov., Aug 22, IRNA – Deputy Head of Iran's Drug Control Headquarters Assadollah Hadinejad said on Saturday that in the first four months of the year, 240 tons of drugs were confiscated in different provinces of the country.
Hadinejad told IRNA that Iran is a pioneer in the campaign against drug trafficking and annual confiscation of a large amount of illicitdrugs indicates the country's constant efforts in the field.
He noted that Afghanistan is major producer and Europe is the major consumer of narcotic drugs worldwide. 'Due to the same reason, Iran is the best route for transit of narcotic drugs and to prevent the phenomenon various measures have been taken including fencing eastern borders.'
He noted that presently only 35 percent of illicit drugs are smuggled through Iranian territory.
However, he added, the figure is hoped to drop to 15 percent by the end of this year once Iran-Pakistan border is fenced.
In recent decades, Iran has been hit by drug trafficking, mainly because of its 936-kilometer shared border with Afghanistan, which produces more than 90% of the world's opium.
According to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, the Islamic Republic is netting eight times more opium and three times more heroin than all other countries in the world combined.
The war on drug trade originating from Afghanistan has claimed the lives of nearly 3,700 Iranian police officers over the past three decades.