According to a detailed investigative report by Syria TV, the Iranian regime’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has reactivated its drug trafficking operations in eastern Syria, using female operatives and forged Syrian documents as part of a broader strategy to reestablish influence in the border region of Deir ez-Zor. The IRGC, facing financial constraints and political limitations, is using narcotics as a tool for both revenue generation and territorial infiltration.
The operation centers on a female-led network composed of Iranian, Syrian, Lebanese, and Iraqi nationals. At its helm is an Iranian woman operating under the name Hana Fadel—her real name is Ziba Abd al-Reza Ehsan. Her deputy, another Iranian national, uses the alias Salma al-Khaled. Both women possess falsified Syrian identification papers, allowing them to move freely and manage IRGC-linked activities in areas bordering Iraq.
The network’s operations include the storage and cross-border smuggling of narcotics such as captagon pills and powdered drugs. Over 7 million pills and 27 kilograms of narcotics have reportedly been trafficked since the start of 2025. Some shipments are funneled through sophisticated routes, including a tunnel equipped with a rail cart and accessed by elevator from the Iraqi side.
#Iran News: Syrian Seizure of 3 Million Captagon Pills Exposes Iranian Regime’s Role in Regional Drug Traffickinghttps://t.co/i3JA1WKBjJ
— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) March 22, 2025
The report also names several local women involved in trafficking and distribution, such as “Ahood” in al-Bukamal, who manages a key warehouse, and “Umm Ibrahim,” who oversees local distribution in Deir ez-Zor through a network of 30 individuals, most of whom are women and university students. These efforts are supported by former operatives and revived cells like the “Mashhadani Group,” which facilitates logistics and transport.
Syria TV warns that the IRGC’s narcotics operations are not limited to criminal intent but are designed to lay the groundwork for reestablishing military and intelligence networks in Syria. The report calls on Syrian authorities to act swiftly before these covert networks embed themselves beyond detection.