TEHRAN — Bushehr Province’s Navy commander said forces have seized a ton of opium during two separate operations in the province.

Valiollah Rezaee Nezhad said on Tuesday that maritime guards seized some 600 kilograms of opium during a clash with traffickers in Bushehr’s Bandar Ganaveh area, Mehr reported.

Rezaee also said that in another operation, Bushehr’s police confiscated 400 kilograms of opium in collaboration with Hormozgan province’s police.

Two boats and three motorcycles were seized during the two operations, and nine smugglers were arrested, he added.

Above 5 tons of illegal drugs have been seized during the first nine months of the current Iranian calendar year (ending November 22, 2019) in the province, he said.

Iran is at the forefront of the fight against drug trafficking. So far, Iran has lost 3,800 forces during the fight against drug smuggling.

According to reports, in 2018 alone, Iranian forces carried out 1,557 operations against drug traffickers, seizing approximately 807 tons of different types of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances.

The Iranian anti-narcotics police have always staged periodic operations against drug traffickers and dealers, but reports - which among others indicate an improved and systematic dissemination of information - reveal that the world's most forefront and dedicated anti-narcotic force (as UN drug-campaign assessments put it) has embarked on a long-term countrywide plan to crack down on the drug trade since more than a decade ago.

MH/PA