The Syrian government is working to intensify its efforts to reduce drug smuggling through land crossings and marine ports, in light of a complex regional environment and the escalation of international pressure to combat illegal trafficking in narcotic drugs.
These efforts are part of a strategy aimed at reorganizing the movement of entry and exit from the country, ensuring the safety of the commercial supply chain, and enhancing the oversight of exports and imports, in an effort to restore confidence in the customs system.
The Latakia Port, as a vital center of freight movement, is witnessing the application of a set of strict regulatory measures, including activating the trained police dog unit (K9), which has become an essential part of daily inspection.
Field sources indicate that this unit plays a pivotal role in raising the efficiency of the discovery of prohibited materials, especially in commercial shipments and unannounced parcels.
In addition to the security role, these measures contributed to improving the work environment inside the outlets, by organizing the movement of goods, reducing the period of inspections, and controlling customs clearance operations, which enhances confidence between the state, importers and investors.
A clear decline in smuggling attempts is recorded as a result of activating modern inspection systems and increasing coordination between the security and customs authorities.
Strong control procedures and infrastructure modernization
In a special statement to Al -Jazeera Net, Mazen Alloush, Director of Relations at the General Authority for Land and Maritime Ports, said that the authority is making continuous efforts to strengthen the anti -drug smuggling system within a comprehensive strategy aimed at protecting national security, and ensuring the safety of the legitimate trade movement, in light of increasing regional challenges and escalating international pressures.
Alloush added that the regulatory measures witnessed a clear reinforcement through the deployment of trained police dogs (K9) and activating them on a daily basis in the inspection of containers and shipments, noting that this step contributed effectively to raising the efficiency of detection of narcotic substances and thwarting their smuggling attempts, especially through commercial shipments and unauthorized parcels.
He explained that the authority is working to raise the efficiency of the ports by updating the infrastructure, and providing them with advanced digital examination systems, as well as extensive training programs for workers, with the aim of carrying out inspections in a professional and fast way that limits any possible gaps.
Alloush pointed out that these measures reflected positively on the performance indicators, as it was observed “a concrete decline in smuggling attempts, in parallel with improving the customs work environment and accelerating the movement of goods, which strengthened the confidence of economic actors in the national system of outlets.”
Recover control and improve the reputation of ports
Before the fall of the Assad regime, the name of the port of Latakia was associated with drug smuggling, until it is known in many circles as the “hashish and Captagon crossing”, as a result of the concentration of the fourth division forces in it, which turned it into a point for exporting narcotic substances towards the Gulf states and Europe, according to observers.
These practices led to the deterioration of the reputation of the Syrian ports, and put them on international surveillance lists.
Ali Adra, director of public relations at the port of Latakia, said in an interview with Al -Jazeera Net, that the situation has changed radically after the restoration of security control over the port, as the security forces managed to seize large warehouses for the manufacture of drugs inside a laboratory surrounding the port, which was under the control of the fourth division. These warehouses were used to manufacture narcotic pills that later export abroad through commercial ships.
He adds that the new port administration adopted a series of measures to protect exports and imports from the risk of pollution with prohibited charges, noting that inspection through police dogs is one of the multiple stages within an integrated regulatory plan aimed at restoring international confidence in the port and improving its reputation.
Building economic confidence
Economist Osama Al -Abdullah, a specialist in smuggling and regional trade issues, believes that the ongoing transformations in the Syrian customs outlets, especially the marine ones, reflect a strategic direction that is not limited to the security side, but also extends towards rebuilding economic confidence with the regional and international surroundings.
In his interview with Al -Jazeera Net, he indicates that any facility linking his name to drug smuggling loses its value as a commercial port, and it is avoided by shipping companies and investors, which exacerbates economic isolation.
Al -Abdullah affirms that the supervisory measures that were applied, such as the use of police dogs, modernization of inspection systems, and cadres training, represent a necessary infrastructure to resume stable and safe trade relations.
He also believes that improving the customs work environment not only contributes to reducing smuggling, but also reduces operational costs and provides a more transparent environment, which in turn enhances the chances of attracting new investments in the export and import sectors.
Ahmed Sorour, a merchant working in the field of import and export through the port of Latakia, confirms that the change in the administration was reflected directly on the performance of the port, explaining that the procedures for customs clearance have become faster and more professional, while the levels of corruption and extortion that were imposed by previous military bodies were reduced.
He adds that the merchant today feels more confident in dealing with the port, despite the strict control, because the procedures have become clear and transparent, without intermediaries or interventions.
He believes that serious security control helped to improve the image of the port regionally, and opened again doors that were closed in some markets due to fears of suspicious shipments.
