Jordan Suspected of Conducting Airstrike Against Drug Traffickers in Syria

Late Monday night, an airstrike, suspected to be executed by the Jordanian air force, struck a location in Syria’s southern Sweida province, according to reports from Syrian opposition activists. This incident follows an earlier report that Jordanian troops had engaged and killed several smugglers at the border.

While there has been no official statement from Jordan confirming their involvement in the Sweida strike, the area is notorious as a smuggling route for drugs from Syria into Jordan.

For years, smugglers have exploited Jordan’s position as a transit point to export Captagon amphetamines from Syria to wealthy Gulf states. Jordanian forces have intercepted multiple smuggling operations, some of which involved using drones to transport drugs across the border.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based opposition monitoring group, the airstrike in Salkhad, within the Sweida province, resulted in the death of a well-known local drug dealer. The Observatory suggests that the Jordanian air force was likely responsible for the strike, though details were not provided.

On the same day, Jordan’s official news agency reported that border guards had engaged smugglers on the Syrian border, resulting in deaths and injuries. The report also mentioned the capture of nine smugglers and the seizure of almost five million Captagon pills and a quantity of cannabis.

The proliferation of the Captagon drug trade has been a significant concern for Jordan and other Gulf countries, with millions of pills smuggled over recent years. The drug is popular for recreational use and among those needing to stay alert for physically demanding tasks.

Previously, in late August, an airstrike targeted an alleged drug manufacturing facility in southern Syria near the Jordanian border, believed to be carried out by Jordan. In May, a similar airstrike in a village in Sweida killed a notorious Syrian drug lord and his family, with activists suggesting Jordanian responsibility.

To date, Jordan has not publicly acknowledged any involvement in these airstrikes.