But a year after the country’s regime change, large-scale manufacturing of the synthetic drug has been disrupted, according to a new UNODC research report.
“While the drug market’s expansion in recent years divided the region, the need to act now is uniting it,” said UNODC Director of Operations Bo Mathiasen, adding that countries are now sharing intelligence and executing joint operations, which has led to “record” seizures this year alone.
Millions of tablets
Since December last year, Syria has dismantled 15 industrial-grade laboratories and 13 smaller storage facilities, according to the investigative report. However, Captagon manufacturing is likely to continue in the Middle East.
Before December 2024, daily production in Syria could have been millions of tablets. Previous production stocks could sustain supply for a couple of years if not intercepted.
The UNODC says increased interdiction over the past year may have somewhat reduced the quantities of Captagon on the market, with prices now higher in some of the Gulf countries, as well as in Syria’s neighboring countries.
But traffickers have diversified their routing strategies and are using new methods to move drugs across the region’s land borders, such as balloons and drones.
Joint efforts
The report highlights renewed efforts toward regional cooperation against Captagon production and trafficking, including through shared intelligence and coordinated responses.
Countries are still compiling the aggregate volume of seizures made in their territories, but individual cases documented by UNODC so far suggest that since December 2024, a minimum of 177 million tablets have been intercepted across the Arab region. This is equivalent to 30 tons of Captagon.
“This shows that political will and international cooperation can disrupt even the most complex illicit criminal economies,” Mathiasen said.
However, the current discontinuation of Captagon may cause dealers and people who use drugs to turn to methamphetamine and other synthetic drugs. The report therefore advocates a comprehensive approach that includes drug prevention and treatment.
A broader UNODC report on the synthetic drug market in Arab countries is expected to be completed in June 2026.