UNIPATH STAFF
The General Department of Anti-Narcotics in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) thwarted a plot to smuggle 8 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine and a kilogram of cannabis into the country in September, one of dozens of such counternarcotics operations throughout 2020.
“Reliable information was received from Dubai customs police that two men residing in a neighboring country came to a Dubai port by a dhow to deliver a quantity of drugs to a compatriot residing in the Emirate of Dubai,” Department Director Brig. Gen. Eid Muhammad Thani Hareb said.
An undercover agent, who infiltrated the smuggling gang, received the drugs hidden in two vegetable boxes. Police arrested three drug traffickers at the port.
Emiratis attribute their success to cooperation from citizens and international partners. In the latest annual statistics available, the UAE Ministry of Interior noted an 11% rise in drug trafficking arrests and a 29% decline in drug abuse deaths. Drug seizures amounted to 3,888 kilograms.
The UAE cooperated with 40 countries, resulting in 122 cross-border anti-narcotic operations.
In 1976, the Dubai Police Department created a modest office to fight crimes linked to illegal drugs. Owing to a constant growth in population and businesses and a consequent surge in drug cases, the office grew into the General Department of Anti-Narcotics.