Large cache of illegal drug lords reportedly exposed after fall of al-Assad regime in Syria,
The stockpiles found by Syrian rebels are believed to be linked to al-Assad military headquarters, implicating the fallen regime in the manufacture and distribution of the drug.
But as we’ll see, Captagon was once a pharmaceutical drug, similar to some of the legally available stimulant drugs we still use today for conditions including attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Captagon was once a pharmaceutical
Captagon is the original brand name of an old synthetic pharmaceutical stimulant originally made in Germany in the 1960s. It was an alternative to amphetamines and methamphetamine, which were used as drugs at the time.
The active ingredient in the drug is phenethylline and it was initially marketed for conditions including ADHD and the sleep disorder narcolepsy. Its use was similar to some of the legally available stimulants we still use today, such as dexamphetamine.
The effects of Captagon are similar to those of amphetamine. It increases dopamine in the brain, causing feelings of well-being, happiness, and euphoria. It also improves focus, concentration and stamina. But it has many unwanted side effects, such as low-level psychosis.
This drug was originally sold mostly in the Middle East and parts of Europe. It was available over the counter (without a prescription) for a short time before becoming available by prescription only in Europe.
It was approved for only a short time in the United States before becoming a controlled substance in the 1980s, but it was still legal to treat narcolepsy in many European countries until relatively recently.
According to the International Narcotics Control Board, pharmaceutical manufacturing of Captagon had ceased by 2009.
illegal trade dominates
The illegally manufactured version is commonly called Captagon (with a small c). It is sometimes called “chemical courage” because it is believed to be used to help soldiers concentrate and energize in war-torn areas of the Middle East.
For example, it was reportedly found on the bodies of Hamas soldiers during the conflict with Israel.
Its manufacture is relatively simple and cheap, making it an obvious target for the black-market drug trade.
Black-market Captagon is now produced almost exclusively in surrounding countries such as Syria and Lebanon. It is used mostly in the Middle East, including for entertainment in some Gulf states.
It is one of the most commonly used illicit drugs in Syria.
A recent report shows that Captagon earned more than US$7.3 billion (about $2.4 billion per year) in Syria and Lebanon between 2020 and 2022.
What we know about illicit drugs in general is that any seizure or crackdown on manufacturing or sales has a very limited impact on the drug market because another manufacturer or distributor will spring up to meet the demand. .
So in all likelihood, given the size of the Captagon market in the Middle East, these latest drug discoveries and seizures are likely to hamper manufacturing only for a short period of time.
(Author: Nicole Lee, Assistant Professor at the National Drug Research Institute (Melbourne), Curtin University)
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
