How Captagon penetrated the Middle East amid Syria war

A small pill named Captagon enabled Bashar al Assad’s regime to entrench itself in the Syrian governing apparatus during the civil war, fuelling addiction across the Middle East, while generating a staggering $57 billion revenue, according to several media reports and academic surveys.

But how did Captagon turn Syria into a narcostate?

Originating in the 1960s as a clinical drug designed to treat ADHD and depression, Captagon contained fenethylline, a mild amphetamine. By the 1980s, it was banned worldwide because of its addictive properties, social impact and long-term health hazards.

“It was in the late 1970s, 1980s that they realised it caused serious health problems and addiction. It ceased to be used as a medicinal drug,” Dr Chrissie Steenkamp, who teaches at UK's Oxford Brookes University, told TRT World.

Surplus stock found its way to southeastern Europe and then reached the Arabian Peninsula, where demand soared. By the 2000s, production shifted to Lebanon, with Hezbollah at the helm, according to London based policy institute Chatham House.

Several experts suggest that Hezbollah allegedly used Iranian reconstruction funds to acquire machinery to mass-produce counterfeit Captagon. The group, as per the survey, established drug routes through Jordan and Assad-controlled Syria. Hezbollah, however, denies any role in Captagon production.

“The Syrian regime knew Hezbollah was using its territory to traffic Captagon and likely benefited, whether through payments or taxes,” says Dr Steenkamp.

Syria’s descent into drug cartels

When Syria’s protests turned into civil war, foreign actors like Iran-backed Hezbollah, Qassem Soleimani’s Revolutionary Guard, and Russia entered the fray to prop up Assad’s regime. While they provided military support, US sanctions crippled Syria’s economy, making drug production a lucrative survival strategy.

Captagon production in Syria became industrialised. The pills, costing as little as $0.10 to produce, sold for up to $20 each in Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Jordan and several Gulf countries.

Manufacturing facilities shifted to southern Syria and regime strongholds, allegedly operated by Hezbollah, Iran-backed militias, and the Syrian military’s Fourth Armored Division, led by Maher al Assad, Bashar’s brother.

“It became very obvious that the government itself was benefiting directly from Captagon production,” notes Dr Steenkamp.

Captagon has been smuggled using creative methods, hiding in everyday items like pomegranates, tea shipments or machinery. The smugglers use Syria’s porous borders using networks of militias, drones and traffickers to move vast quantities virtually undetected.

Captagon exports generated an estimated $5 billion annually, cementing Syria’s role as the epicentre of the trade.

The regional fallout

By 2018, Captagon smuggling and addiction surged across the Middle East. Jordan, once a transit point, saw skyrocketing drug-related crime. In 2021 alone, Jordanian authorities confiscated 15.5 million pills. By 2022, drug-related crimes occurred every 28 minutes.

Jordan’s King Abdullah called Captagon a “transnational security threat” and sought US assistance to combat smuggling networks.

Neighbouring Saudi Arabia, which allegedly consumes 50 percent of all Captagon produced, seized millions of pills hidden in shipments like pomegranates. In 2021, Riyadh banned the import of fruits and vegetables from Lebanon to combat Captagon distribution in the Kingdom.

Even the UAE faced large-scale smuggling attempts, including a 2023 raid in Dubai that netted 86 million Captagon pills valued at $1 billion.

In response, US President Joe Biden signed the Captagon Act, targeting Syria’s narcotics networks. Gulf states also pressured Assad to crack down, using normalisation as leverage.

Pill politics

By 2023, Captagon was no longer just a drug—it was a geopolitical bargaining tool.

Jordan, overwhelmed by armed smuggling networks, initiated talks with Assad. By May, Assad—ostracised since 2011—was reinstated into the Arab League, partly due to promises to address the Captagon trade. Yet, his regime showed little appetite for change.

“Syria’s main export was Captagon,” says Dr Steenkamp. “It was too valuable for the regime to give up entirely, even if they denied direct involvement.”

The irony was stark: on the day Assad attended the Arab League summit hosted by Saudi Arabia, the kingdom confiscated 8 million Captagon pills at its borders.

The beginning of the end?

With Assad’s regime ousted in a recent rebel offensive, the future of Syria’s Captagon empire hangs in the balance. Videos circulating online show warehouses packed with Captagon pills, now exposed to the world.

Ahmad al Sharaa, leader of frontline Syrian anti-regime group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), vowed to dismantle the trade. But the demand remains.

“There is still a market for Captagon. And as long as there’s demand, someone will produce it,” says Dr Steenkamp.

Meanwhile, Hezbollah has been weakened by Israel's recent invasion of Lebanon, which has reportedly further disrupted the supply chain.

Yet Captagon production is not going to vanish so easily. “We’ve seen increasing production in Iraq and even in EU states like Germany and the Netherlands,” warns Dr Steenkamp.