Draft:Narcotic Jihad

Narco Jihad or Narcotic Jihad refers to the use of narcotics by Islamic militant groups as a means of financing their operations, destabilizing societies, and furthering their ideological goals. The term encompasses a broader concept of narcotic terrorism carried out by jihadist organizations, where drug trade serves as both a revenue source and a tool of asymmetric warfare. Unlike drug traffickers and organized crime groups that primarily seek monetary gain, terrorist groups usually have non‐finances goals: publicity, dissemination of an ideology, the destruction of a society or regime, and simply spreading terror and intimidation.

In 2005, Al Jazeera reported on the extradition of an Afghan drug dealer Baz Mohammad to the United States. According to the indictment, Mohammad purportedly told his associates that selling heroin in the U.S. was an act of jihad, as it involved taking Americans' money in exchange for a product that would harm them.

In 2007, Rafael Fermoselle, a retired U.S foreign service officer, wrote a book titled "The Next Phase of Jihad: A War with Islamic Narco-terrorists". The author's hypothesis is that following historical pattern, members of the al-Qaeda Network (AQN) stand a very good chance of undergoing a metamorphosis from Islamic insurgents to gangsters.

In 2010, the term "Narco jihad" was used by Brookings in an article titled "Narco-Jihad: Drug Trafficking and Security in Afghanistan and Pakistan", analyzing the evolution of the narcotics economy in the region since the late 1960s and the progressive involvement of various state and nonstate actors in the economy since then, with particular attention to current Islamist jihadi networks in the region.

In 2012, Gen. Carter F. Ham, then head of AFRICOM noted that Narco-trafficking, arms smuggling and hostage-taking are the main activities of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, the Al Shabaab movement in Somalia and the Boko Haram group in Nigeria

In 2016, The Tribune reported on the arrest of a Pakistani drug smuggler Ramzaan from the Sowana border outpost in Fazilka district, Punjab, India. According to the indictment, Ramzaan told the Punjab Police that the smugglers are being motivated to spread the ‘poison’ in the border state to ruin the young generation of ‘kafirs’ (infidels).

Anis Amri, responsible for the 2016 Berlin truck attack that killed 12 people, was found to have consumed drugs, including cocaine and hashish, before the attack. Autopsy reports suggest that his drug use may have influenced his actions during the attack.

In 2017, leaked audio message from ISIS India module recruiter Abdul Rashid, appealed Muslims to annihilate kaffirs(infidels) by poisoning them.

In 2018, Al Arabiya aired an exclusive documentary titled "Hezbollah’s Narco Jihad," which delved into Hezbollah's alleged drug trafficking and money laundering operations.

In 2019, The International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation (ICSR) released a report titled "Drugs and Terrorism: The Overlaps in Europe". The report provides an in-depth analysis of the intersections between illicit drug activities and terrorism within Europe between 2012 and 2017. The report concludes that Of 75 jihadist attackers in Europe between 2012 and 2018, at least 7% consumed illicit drugs in the hours or days prior to their attacks.

In September 2021. Bishop Joseph Kallarangatt of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church in Kerala, India used the term "Narco Jihad" to describe alleged strategies by certain extremist groups to promote drug addiction among non-Muslims, particularly targeting Christian youth, as a means of destabilization.The Bharatiya Janata Party supported the bishop saying what he has alleged is the voice of the community and appealed to the central government to bring a law to deal with “narco terrorism and love jihad”.

In 2024, The U.S. Treasury Department has sanctioned individuals and networks linked to Hezbollah for their roles in drug trafficking, underscoring the group's involvement in the narcotics trade to finance its activities.

Captagon - The Drug of Jihad

Captagon, an illicit amphetamine, has been referred to as the "drug of Jihad" due to its association with various Islamic terrorist groups.The drug has been widely used by various factions, exclusively by those involved in the Syrian civil war, to enhance combat performance and fund their operations.

Syria has emerged as a central hub for the production of Captagon under the leadership of Bashar Al-Assad and his allies.Hassan Muhammad Daqqou who had close ties with the Fourth Division of the Syrian Army, is behind the establishment of wide drug trafficking network in Lebanon and Syria.

In April 2021, Lebanese authorities arrested Daqqou on charges related to drug trafficking, including a significant Captagon shipment intercepted en route to Saudi Arabia. Despite his incarceration, reports suggest that he continued to manage his operations from prison, allegedly with assistance from Hezbollah affiliates.

In July 2020, Italian authorities seized a massive shipment of amphetamines, specifically 14 metric Tonnes of Captagon tablets, in the port of Salerno. Initially, officials believed these drugs were produced by ISIS to fund their operations.

In April 2021, Malaysia’s customs seized 94.8 million Captagon pills, containing amphetamine worth $1.26 billion (5.2 Malaysian Ringgit), in the country’s largest drug bust made possible by Saudi Arabia’s Directorate General of Narcotics Control and the Malaysian police

In 2024, the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI) presented a report titled "Increasing links between drug trafficking, organized crime and terrorism: The Case of Captagon" during the G7 Roma-Lyon Group Heads of Delegation Meeting. The report reveals that the terrorist groups like ISIS and Al Nusra have been extensively involved in facilitating the smuggling of chemical precursors for captagon production. The report also alleges strong indications of Hezbollah's role in the production and smuggling of captagon.

While ISIS is accused of using this pill extensively, a 2017 article from Newsweek states that "Since 2008, 50 percent of the world's amphetamine seizures took place in the Arabian Peninsula—and ISIS may be involved in that business, like the Taliban has done with opium—to drive revenue. Syria and Lebanon were the top countries for amphetamine seizures in 2016, the trade being partly fueled by the Syrian conflict. But no attacker linked to ISIS in Europe has been found to have taken the amphetamine-filled Captagon immediately before striking. Elsewhere, evidence of drug taking before an attack was found in only one case: the June 2015 beach massacre in the Tunisian resort of Sousse, when student Seifeddine Rezgui killed 38 people with an automatic rifle".

In December 2024, a significant Captagon production facility was uncovered near Damascus. The Guardian article notes that Neighboring countries Jordan and Lebanon became the most popular smuggling routes for Syrian Captagon.

Opium

Opiate drugs (heroine and morphine) are derived from opium, a chemical produced by poppy plants. Most of the opium produced is converted into heroin, which is then trafficked to different locations. Afghanistan is the primary source for most opiates produced and trafficked around the world.

In 2016, around 92 per cent of opium poppies were grown in either Taliban-controlled areas or ‘high-confidence Taliban support zone. There is also evidence of the presence of the ISIS in poppy cultivation and sales business in Afghanistan, although it is estimated that the ISIS only controls around 1 per cent of the total opium poppy cultivation.

On August 2021, Cesar Gudes, the head of the Kabul office of the U.N. Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC), told Reuters that “The Taliban have counted on the Afghan opium trade as one of their main sources of income”. UNODC estimates that around 80 percent of global opium and heroin supplies is carried out by Taliban.

UNODC's November 2022 report states that Opium cultivation in Afghanistan increased by 32% after Taliban's take over in August 2021.

Taliban banned opium cultivation in the country in 2022, but Afghanistan’s opium poppy cultivation grew by 19% in 2024 according to a United Nations report.

References

This page will be placed in the following categories if it is moved to the article namespace.

Categories:

• Islamic terrorism
• Jihadism