Seizure of 130 kg of heroin in Nigeria

The seizure of 130 kg of heroin in Nigeria, on Nov 19, concealed in auto parts shipped from Iran, a few weeks only after the seizure of illegal arms in Apapa Port, is not surprising as it is intended to finance the Islamic militias in Nigeria, such as the "Hisbah" militia, Boko Haram and Mend. However, the seizure of 130 kg of heroin is only the tip of the iceberg. It is another evidence of the involvement of Qods Forces's Africa corps (under the orders of Ali Akbar Tabatabaei) in Nigeria to promote Iran's subversive activity in Africa.

It is known that the Iranian heroin originated from Afghanistan, one of the most important drug producers, and was intended to be infiltrated in Europe by the African militias. This kind of agreement was reached between Iran and Islamic militias in Nigeria and also in Gambia and in Senegal. It is to be recalled that in June 2010 a shipment of 2 tons cocaine originated in Latin America (and organized by the same Tabatabaei) was seized in Gambia.

There are several kinds of drugs (heroin, cocaine and opium) that reach Iran from Afghanistan, Pakistan and China, and which are smuggled into Africa. As for the drugs shipments, one of the easiest way to ship them to Africa is apparently to conceal them in auto-parts or in agricultural material or equipment and others, and to take advantage of civil agreements like Iranian agricultural aid to Africa as a legitimate cover for drugs smuggling.

The activity described above is referred to as narco-terrorism, namely, engaging in drug dealing with the purpose of funding terror activities, combining the modus operandi of terror organizations with drug smuggling.

The DEA (The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration) currently defines narco- terrorism as the activity of "an organized group that engages in drug dealing and smuggling for the purpose of funding the activities whose objectives are to promote a political agenda by intimidating the public or the government."

Appendix

Internationally, law enforcement bodies engaged in preventing drug trafficking cooperate closely with each other in their struggle against organized crime. They coordinate their activities in the framework of the United Nations' Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), which is responsible for implementing the United Nations' Convention's resolution against transnational organized crime. The UNODC has initiated international cooperation to promote the enforcement of the resolution in various contexts, including narco-terrorism, which it identifies as a fairly new development in global drug trafficking, and intends to take stronger measures to enforce the law against anyone who engages in it.

The country leading the war against narco-terrorism is the U.S. In 1998, the U.S. approved the International Crime Control Strategy (ICCS), which set national objectives to the war against organized crime and made recommendations about incorporating all the law enforcement bodies in the U.S. that are involved in this issue. ICCS identifies the main areas in which organized crime is active in the U.S. These include drug and people trafficking, gambling, violating copyrights and money laundering. ICCS is also engaged in combating the integration of crime and terror organizations and in the terror organizations' criminal acts.