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Seizures of amphetamines suggest sharp rise in Saudi Arabia usage

Seizures of amphetamines have risen sharply in Saudi Arabia, suggesting a surge in consumption of the illegal stimulant in the kingdom, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) reported.

  • Financial Times
  • Published: 00:04 June 28, 2008
  • Gulf News

  • Saudi Arabia accounted for 28 per cent of all global amphetamine seizures in 2006.
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London, UK: Seizures of amphetamines have risen sharply in Saudi Arabia, suggesting a surge in consumption of the illegal stimulant in the kingdom, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) reported.

Saudi Arabia accounted for 28 per cent of all global amphetamine seizures in 2006, the latest year for which data are available, according to the UNODC's annual report.

The quantities impounded in the kingdom started to rise sharply in 2004 and reached 12.3 tonnes in 2006. "This is equivalent to the sum of all UK seizures, the biggest amphetamine market in Europe, from 2000 to 2006," the report said.

A further two tonnes of amphetamines destined for Saudi Arabia were seized in neighbouring Oman.

Antonio Maria Costa, the UN agency's executive director, said his organisation was talking to the Saudi government about the trend, which appeared to have continued into last year.

"Assuming that the efficiency of law enforcement doesn't change very much over a short time, it suggests this had been mostly for local consumption."

In another important shift, the report noted a sharp increase in the area of coca cultivation in Colombia, reversing a five-year decline. It said that about 99,000 hectares were under coca bush last year, an increase of 21,000 hectares over 2006.

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