Interior ministers from 4 Arab countries agree in Jordan that illegal drug trade needs to be tackled
By OMAR AKOUR
Associated Press
AMMAN, Jordan (AP) — The interior ministers of four Arab countries have held talks in Jordan to discuss ways of combatting the illegal drug trade in the region. The ministers from Iraq, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon agreed Saturday to set up a joint telecommunication cell to exchange information. The drug trade has been a source of tension between Jordan and Syria, where the Jordanian air force reportedly carried out strikes on Syria’s south targeting alleged smugglers and drug manufacturing plants. Smugglers have used Jordan as a corridor in recent years to smuggle highly addictive Captagon amphetamine pills out of Syria, mainly to oil-rich Arab Gulf states.