Anti-Narcotics Force says it helped US and Sri Lanka dismantle Afghanistan-based drug network

Pakistan’s Anti-Narcotics Force says information it shared with the United States and Sri Lanka helped expose a trafficking network moving methamphetamine through the region.

According to an ANF statement, authorities seized a total of 671 kilograms of the drug, known as crystal meth or ICE, from Karachi and Colombo ports. The ANF said 200 kilograms were recovered from a container at Karachi Port after it provided “actionable intelligence.” Its officers also arrested a suspected Afghan mastermind identified as Ehsanullah, along with local handlers.

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Actionable intelligence

The ANF said investigators then shared “critical information” with Sri Lankan authorities and the US Drug Enforcement Administration. That information led to the recovery of 471 kilograms at Colombo Port during a joint operation coordinated by the DEA and Sri Lankan authorities. The drugs had been concealed in bath towels.

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Critical information

The US embassy in Colombo said the narcotics were worth $21 million and were intended for international markets after being smuggled through Sri Lanka. Sri Lankan police and the embassy had described the network as Pakistani and said two Pakistani men were arrested, while the ANF identified it as an Afghanistan-based network.

The Pakistani force said the traffickers were attempting to use Pakistani territory as a transit route. It described Pakistan as both a transit and victim state for Afghan-origin drugs, and said the operation demonstrated its intelligence-led approach and cooperation with international law-enforcement agencies.

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Pakistan remains both a transit and victim state for Afghan-origin drugs.