US and Pakistan Seize 463kg Afghan Meth Worth $21m

ISLAMABAD: The United States Embassy in Islamabad announced on Monday that American and Pakistani authorities seized roughly 463 kilogrammes of crystal methamphetamine worth $21 million in a coordinated operation against an Afghan-origin narcotics network.

The seizure took place on August 30, and the embassy made it public more than three weeks later. The operation was led by the embassy's Drug Enforcement Administration office in Islamabad and Pakistan's Anti-Narcotics Force, with support from Sri Lanka's Police Narcotics Bureau and the DEA's New Delhi office, according to the embassy. The methamphetamine had originated in Afghanistan and was being moved through Pakistan toward Colombo, the embassy said.

Between August 14 and 29, the ANF's Karachi-based Port Control Unit identified containers scheduled for shipment from Pakistan to Colombo, the embassy said. The unit suspected the containers were carrying illicit narcotics that originated in Afghanistan. It then alerted DEA Islamabad, which worked with authorities in the countries involved to intercept the shipment. Several suspects were arrested, including people of Pakistani origin. The embassy statement did not disclose how many people were held or where the arrests took place. It said the operation involved authorities in Pakistan, Sri Lanka and India, but did not give a country-by-country breakdown.

The embassy said the operation showed the strength of counternarcotics cooperation between Washington and Islamabad. It noted that American foreign assistance has supported sustained training for ANF personnel, and it called the Pakistani force a "key partner in advancing US priorities in counternarcotics interdiction." The statement noted that the seizure was part of a larger effort to disrupt drug trafficking routes from Afghanistan through South Asia.

The embassy added that the United States remains committed to working with Pakistan to dismantle transnational criminal organisations and protect American citizens from narcotrafficking. It said the Trump administration has made halting the flow of illicit narcotics a key component of making America more secure.