Syria’s drug problem casts shadow over Assad’s rehabilitation
Editor’s Note: A version of this story appears in CNN’s Meanwhile in the Middle East newsletter, a three-times-a-week look inside the region’s biggest stories. Sign up here. CNN — Almost…
Ireland recovers largest ever drugs seizure worth over $165M
CNN — The biggest-ever drug seizure in the history of Ireland was intercepted off the coast of Cork in the southeast of the country on Tuesday, Irish police said. Cocaine…
Dubai police seize over $1 billion of captagon drug smuggled inside furniture
Abu Dhabi CNN — The United Arab Emirates foiled an attempt to smuggle 13 tonnes of the addictive amphetamine captagon – worth more than $1 billion – hidden in a…
Ecuador says six suspects arrested for Fernando Villavicencio assassination are Colombian nationals
Quito, Ecuador CNN — Six suspects arrested in connection with the assassination of Ecuadorian presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio are Colombian nationals and gang members, authorities have confirmed, as a former…
Ecuador election: political violence and insecurity loom large as Ecuadorians get ready to vote
Quito, Ecuador CNN — Gissella Cecibel Molina doesn’t know if she will lose her right eye, which was injured last week when her colleague and friend, presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio,…
Marijuana farmers in Colombia push government to find a place for them
Cajibio CNN — On a recent Friday morning, about 200 coca and marijuana farmers gathered in the small town of Cajibio, southwestern Colombia, to hear the government out. Colombian’s government…
Saridewi Djamani: Singapore executes first woman in nearly two decades for drug trafficking
CNN — Singapore on Friday hanged a woman convicted of attempting to traffic an ounce of heroin, the first execution of a female prisoner in nearly two decades in what…
International Criminal Court rejects Philippine attempt to block drugs war killings probe
CNN — The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Tuesday rejected an appeal by the Philippine government to block an investigation by prosecutors into former President Rodrigo Duterte’s bloody “war on…
Asia’s drug trade is thriving post-pandemic, UN report warns
Hong Kong CNN — The synthetic drug trade in Asia is roaring to “extreme levels,” with crime groups establishing new trafficking routes to evade enforcement crackdowns and methamphetamine prices hitting…
Leila De Lima: Philippine court dismisses drug charge against fierce critic of ex-president’s ‘war on drugs’
Hong Kong CNN — A Philippine court has dismissed a drug charge against Leila De Lima, a former senator who has spent the past six years in detention and is…