14 million Captagon pills seized in landmark joint Kuwait–UAE anti-drug operation

In a significant demonstration of Gulf security cooperation, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates successfully thwarted what authorities described as the largest attempted smuggling of the psychoactive drug Captagon, seizing more than 14 million tablets in a coordinated joint operation.

The operation was carried out under direct instructions from First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Fahd Yousef Saud Al-Sabah and Chairman of the UAE National Drug Control Agency Sheikh Zayed bin Hamad Al Nahyan, reflecting intensified Gulf Cooperation Council coordination in combating narcotics trafficking.

Security authorities affirmed that the operation embodies the principle that Gulf security is indivisible, with close intelligence and field cooperation between Kuwait’s Directorate-General of Drug Control and its counterpart in Dubai.

According to officials, the seized shipment contained 14,062,500 Captagon pills weighing approximately 2,250 kilograms, concealed with high precision inside a commercial consignment of five containers loaded with corn grains in the Emirate of Dubai.

The joint intelligence-led operation also led to the arrest of three Arab nationals implicated in the smuggling attempt, while authorities confirmed the dismantling of a criminal network responsible for attempting to flood Gulf markets with large quantities of narcotic substances.

Officials stressed that the success of the operation underscores growing regional coordination to confront organized drug trafficking networks and safeguard community security across GCC countries.