What has Assad’s fall revealed about the Captagon drug trade in Syria?

Associated Press

BEIRUT (AP) — Syria’s nearly 14-year-old civil war fragmented the country, crumbled the economy and created fertile ground for the production of the highly addictive drug Captagon. Militias, warlords and the government of Bashar Assad transformed Captagon from a small-scale operation run by small criminal groups into a billion-dollar industrial revenue stream. The recent ousting of Assad has disrupted these networks and has given a closer look at its operations — revealing the workings of a war economy that sustained Assad’s power over Syria. Experts say the change in Syria might create an opportunity to dismantle the Captagon industry.