Drug Trafficking

Syria announces major drug bust through coordination with Iraq against Captagon trafficking

A source in the Syrian Ministry of Interior told The Media Line that anti-narcotics units carried out what he described as a “high-quality” security operation in Homs province.

|ByRIZIK ALABI/THE MEDIA LINE
KURDISH INTERNAL security forces stand guard after seizing a quantity of captagon pills in Qamishli, Syria, March 25, 2025.
A member of the Mexican navy patrols Benito Juarez International Airport after Mexican drug lord Nemesio Oseguera, known as "El Mencho," was killed in Jalisco state, in Mexico City, Mexico, February 22, 2026.

Mexican army kills 'El Melcho': How is Mexico's most violent cartel so powerful? - explainer

With high-caliber weapons and military-grade equipment, the CJNG is one of Mexico's most powerful and violent drug cartels. But how did it gain so much power?

|ByTOBIAS HOLCMAN
Vehicles drive past a burning bus used as a roadblock by organized crime following a federal operation in which a government source said Mexican drug lord Nemesio Oseguera, commonly known as "El Mencho," was killed, in Zapopan, Mexico, February 22, 2026.

New US military-led group aided Mexico's hunt for 'El Mencho' cartel boss

The Joint Interagency Task Force-Counter Cartel, which involves multiple US government agencies, was quietly launched late last year with the goal of mapping out networks of drug cartel members.

|ByREUTERS, TOBIAS HOLCMAN, GOLDIE KATZ
National Guard members stand guard near a burnt bus set on fire by organised crime groups in response to an operation in Jalisco to arrest a high-priority security target, at one of the main avenues in Zapopan, state of Jalisco, Mexico, on February 22, 2026.

Powerful Mexican Jalisco cartel head 'El Mencho' killed during military operation

Initial unverified reports on social media showed that members of the cartel violently overtook an airport in Jalisco. 

|ByGOLDIE KATZ, CORINNE BAUM

US military strike on suspected drug vessel kills four

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stated that the ship "was known by our intelligence to be involved in illicit narcotics smuggling."

OCTOBER 30, 2025ByREUTERS
US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth attends a meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group, after a meeting of NATO Defense Ministers at the Alliance headquarters, in Brussels, Belgium October 15, 2025.

As Gaza ceasefire holds, Trump shifts focus from Middle East to Asia, South America - analysis

As tensions ease in Gaza, Trump’s diplomatic push toward Asia and South America marks a strategic pivot, with trade deals and peace efforts on the horizon.

OCTOBER 27, 2025BySETH J. FRANTZMAN
US President Donald Trump meets with Japan's Emperor Naruhito at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, Japan October 27, 2025

Syria arrests Assad relative tied to $2 billion Captagon empire

Authorities say Namir Badi’ Assad was seized in Al-Qardaha with alleged partners as part of a wider post-regime crackdown on drug and arms networks.

OCTOBER 19, 2025ByRIZIK ALABI/THE MEDIA LINE
Namir Assad.