LATAKIA, SYRIA - APRIL 12, 2025: Syrian authorities seized nearly 4 million captagon pills ready for shipment at the port of Latakia, the country’s Interior Ministry announced on Saturday, April 12. According to the state news agency SANA, the operation was carried out by the Narcotics Control Department in Latakia in coordination with General Security Service. The pills were found hidden inside sealed iron rods that had been prepared for smuggling. Security forces cut open the metal tubes during the raid on a warehouse used to store and prepare the drugs. The seizure comes amid a broader crackdown on narcotics following Syria’s political transition. Bashar al-Assad, who ruled Syria for nearly 25 years, fled to Russia on December 8, ending the decades-long rule of the Baath Party. Ahmad al-Sharaa, who led opposition forces against the regime, was appointed as transitional president on January 29. Writing by Aleyna Cil