Pakistan’s Anti Narcotics Force has disrupted an Afghanistan based drug trafficking network, seizing a combined 671 kilograms of methamphetamine in coordinated operations at Karachi Port and Colombo Port in Sri Lanka, the ANF said on Friday.
Karachi Seizure Sparks the Breakthrough
ANF officials recovered 200 kilograms of methamphetamine, known locally as ice, from a container at Karachi Port and arrested Afghan national Ehsan Ullah, described as the mastermind of the network, along with local facilitators, according to the ANF and Dawn.
Investigators said questioning of Ehsan Ullah produced critical information about the network’s international operations, which was then shared with Sri Lankan authorities and the United States Drug Enforcement Administration.
Colombo Port Yields Larger Haul
Acting on that intelligence, the DEA coordinated with Sri Lankan authorities on a joint operation at Colombo Port, recovering an additional 471 kilograms of methamphetamine that had been concealed inside towels, the Express Tribune reported. The operation came two days after Sri Lankan police and the US embassy in Colombo separately announced the seizure of nearly half a tonne of methamphetamine, valued at roughly 21 million dollars, in a joint action targeting what they described as a Pakistan based trafficking network.
Pakistan Calls Itself a “Victim State”
The ANF said the busted network had been using Pakistani territory as a transit route for smuggling Afghan origin narcotics to international markets. “Pakistan remains both a transit and victim state for Afghan-origin drugs,” the force said in its statement. The agency said Sri Lankan authorities and the US DEA had formally acknowledged its role in the operation, describing the outcome as a reflection of its intelligence based strategies and cooperation with international law enforcement partners.
The ANF said it used advanced intelligence based strategies to identify and disrupt the transnational organization. Officials described the successful operation as evidence of the force’s professional capabilities and its commitment to combating narcotics trafficking through close cooperation with allied and partner agencies across the region.
Pakistan’s counter narcotics agencies have stepped up cross-border cooperation with regional and international partners this year, as authorities say Afghanistan based networks continue to exploit Pakistani ports and land routes to move narcotics toward markets in South Asia, the Gulf and beyond.
