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Deir Ezzor province: Since the entry of Iranian-backed militias to Deir Ezzor, after having expelled ISIS from western countryside nearly seven years ago, militiamen have wreaked havoc and committed blatant violations, including seizure of public and private properties, military recruitment of men, women and children, planting hashish and manufacturing and promoting drugs.
Planting hashish and manufacturing illicit drugs are considered the most dangerous violations committed by Iranian-backed militias in Deir Ezzor since they took control of the region. Shortly after the entry of the Iranians to the region, Iranian-backed militias started seizing civilian properties and preventing civilians from getting close to their properties and threatened to arrest and kill them under the pretext that the region has become a “military zone.”
In this report, SOHR highlights the most prominent spots of planting hashish and sites where illicit drugs are manufactured by Iranian-backed militias in Deir Ezzor.
Al-Tabni desert is considered the most prominent place of planting and manufacturing narcotics by Iranian-backed militias in the region, where militiamen seized large swaths of land in the past years and started planted hashish. Iranian-backed Syrian and non-Syrian militiamen later brought in equipment and established primitive plants for manufacturing illicit pills, mainly captagon, under supervision of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Lebanese Hezbollah.
The Iranian-backed militias seized this land and planted hashish there, taking advantage of the availability of water needed for irrigation, as well as the location of the land, where no mountains or valleys are located there. According to SOHR sources, the militias prevent civilians from approaching this land, where outposts are deployed on Al-Madhoul road to protect the farms. Even regime soldiers and officers are prevented from approaching those farms before obtaining official approval from IRGC.
It is worth noting that trenches were dug and soil barriers were erected in a farm of an area of 50 acres in the desert called “Al-Zawiyah,” which is located nearly seven kilometers to the south of Al-Madhoul road.
The Iranians also use Mane’ cave, which is located near Al-Barouk mountains and overlooking the 137th Brigade to the south of Deir Ezzor city as a weapon warehouse and a factory for manufacturing captagon.
Speaking to SOHR, a civilian known by his initials as K. M. from Al-Tabni in Deir Ezzor countryside said that he attempted for several times to reach the land where Iranian-backed militias are stationed, but he failed to do so. Although the man was accomplishing tasks for the benefit of the military intelligence service, Iranian-backed militias prevent every body, even regime soldiers, from reaching these farms, as the man said.
It is worth that Iranian-backed militias have also planted hashish in land belonging to displaced civilians in Sa’lu, Al-Zabari in the east of Deir Ezzor and other plots of land known as “the country’s farms” in the same countryside.
In earlier report, SOHR sources reported that they were able to identify the locations of seven illicit drug-manufacturing laboratories in areas under the control of Iranian-backed militias in Deir Ezzor city and countryside; they are as follows:
- A villa in Al-Qusour neighbourhood in Deir Ezzor city.
- A primitive plant near Bahrat Afrah in Al-Qusour neighbourhood in Deir Ezzor city.
- A building near the headquarters of the electrical and mechanical engineering institution in “Port Said” street in Al-Ommal neighbourhood in Deir Ezzor city.
- A primitive plant near Al-Mu’alimeen park (the Teachers’ Park) in Deir Ezzor city.
- A primitive plant in Al-Khanat area on the outskirts of Al-Mayadeen city, east of Deir Ezzor.
- A primitive plant in Al-Hezam area in Al-Bokamal city, east of Deir Ezzor.
- A primitive plant in Al-Villat street in Al-Bokamal city, east of Deir Ezzor.
