By Pishtaz | 2024-02-26

Meeting in Amman on February 17, the interior ministers of Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon and Syria agreed to establish a joint communication cell to combat cross-border drug smuggling.

A day later, Jordanian forces killed five drug smugglers and wounded four others as they attempted to infiltrate from Syria in an incident that highlighted the issue and, some said, Syria's lack of commitment to addressing it.

Drug smuggling across the kingdom's roughly 378km-long border with Syria has been a persistent problem, with narcotics produced in areas controlled by the Syrian regime and Iranian militias trafficked through Jordan and across the region.

At a press conference following the February 17 meeting, Jordanian Interior Minister Mazin al-Farrayeh announced that the four countries will now coordinate efforts to tackle the regional scourge, media outlets reported.

Liaison officers from each country will follow up on information and track shipments of illicit drugs until they reach their final destination, he said. The new cell also will enable the exchange of expertise and training.

"The most important thing we agreed today is that we have a problem, and we have agreed on the necessity of following up these meetings at the ministerial and technical levels," al-Farrayeh said.

"We agreed today that without a joint coordination effort by all countries, we would not be able to achieve the outcome to which we aspire," he added.

Jordan has made previous efforts to address drug smuggling on a regional level.

Meeting last May in Amman, the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan and Syria agreed to take steps to curb drug trafficking, the Jordan Times reported.

In July, a newly established forum to combat drug smuggling from Syria held its first meeting in Amman, AFP reported.

Yet the problem of cross-border drug smuggling remains, with some blaming the Syrian regime for its ongoing failure to curb the flow of narcotics.

Cross-border infiltration

Jordanian forces have tightened border controls in recent years, regularly blocking smuggling and infiltration attempts.

They say the trafficking operations are protected by armed groups, making confrontations with smugglers an increasingly dangerous undertaking.

Jordanian border guards February 18 killed five drug traffickers and wounded four others as they attempted to smuggle large quantities of illicit drugs into the kingdom from Syria, AFP reported.

The dawn operation was carried out in the Eastern Military Zone, in coordination with military security service and the Anti-Narcotics Administration, a military statement said.

"The operation resulted in the killing of five smugglers, the injury of four others and the seizure of large quantities of drugs," the statement said.

The drugs were turned over to the Jordanian authorities.

Jordanian forces in the Eastern Military Zone also thwarted an attempt to infiltrate and smuggle narcotics from Syria into Jordan on February 7.

Three smugglers were killed and large quantities of narcotics were seized, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

A member of the Border Guards sustained critical injuries while applying rules of engagement with smugglers, according to the Jordan Times.

According to the Jordanian armed forces, 194 smuggling and infiltration attempts were recorded between January and August 2023, the newspaper said.

Border guards also dealt with 88 smuggling attempts using drones that carried narcotics and explosives, it said.

In January 2022, Jordanian forces killed 27 infiltrators as they tried to smuggle large amounts of narcotics from Syria into the kingdom, the newspaper said.

The army said it dealt with 383 smuggling and infiltration attempts in 2022, seizing large quantities of narcotics and weapons, while in 2021 it foiled 361 smuggling attempts from Syria, seizing about 15.5 million narcotic pills.

In 2020, more than 130 smuggling attempts from Syria were thwarted, and about 132 million amphetamine pills and 15,000 sheets of hashish seized, the Jordan Times reported.

Syria's lack of effort

There has been increasing regional engagement with the Syrian regime since its readmission to the Arab League in May, ending more than a decade of isolation.

Arab governments had pressured Syria to crack down on the smuggling of drugs -- seen as an issue of critical concern -- as part of the normalization process.

But to date, little has been achieved to stem the flow of illicit drugs from Syria, Asharq al-Awsat reported, pointing out that the February 18 incident put into focus Syria's lack of commitment to the effort.

The Captagon trade provides an essential revenue stream for the Syrian regime, and also provides a lifeline for many militias operating in the country.

"The [February 17] meeting in Amman came a few weeks after official Syrian-Jordanian statements were exchanged about Damascus' 'lack of seriousness' in putting an end to drug smuggling operations coming from its territory," it said.

"Jordan accused Syria of failure to exercise its sovereignty over its territory, adding that it officially sponsors militias affiliated with the army and Iran."

The meeting in Amman was Jordan's latest attempt to tackle the problem through a mix of diplomatic efforts and military action, The National reported.

"Such efforts have been bolstered in recent years by US assistance in fortifying its border with Syria, the main source of the drugs," it said.

One of the main drugs smuggled is the amphetamine-like stimulant Captagon, which is produced largely in Syria and trafficked through Jordan to other countries.