In a disturbing new development, militants from the group Hamas, who carried out the heinous terror attack on October 7, were found to be influenced by a synthetic drug known as Captagon.

This stimulant, referred to as the “cocaine for the poor,” gives users an eerie sense of calm while keeping them alert, allowing them to commit violent acts without hesitation.

Hamas terrorists using this drug tortured, raped, burned, shot and murdered over 1,400, wounding over 5,000 and taking over 200 people hostage and took them back to Gaza. They had no regard for human life and did not discriminate as they committed these atrocities on men, women, children, infants, and the elderly including holocaust survivors.

The Jerusalem Post reported that the drug has been illegally made in southern Europe and passed through Turkey to reach consumers in the Arabian Peninsula.

Captagon first gained a notorious reputation back in 2015 when it was discovered to be used by ISIS fighters to eliminate fear before conducting terrorist operations.

Nowadays, it has become a lucrative business for Syria, often with the support of the militant group Hezbollah. This drug has grown so popular that the money made from its sales in Syria alone was estimated to be at least $3.5 billion in 2020.

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To put that in context, this sum is five times more than what Syria made from all its legal exports, which were valued at just over $700 million.

What’s more, experts believe these numbers could be just the tip of the iceberg. For instance, in Saudi Arabia, it’s estimated that people consume over 600 million Captagon pills a year, creating a market worth between $9 billion and $12 billion.

The drug has spread far beyond the Middle East as well. Law enforcement agencies in countries like Italy, Greece, Malaysia, and Egypt have seized significant amounts of Captagon.

Last December, authorities in Kuwait caught a massive shipment of nine million Captagon pills hidden inside a cargo of oranges. Just a week before that, Dubai officials seized 1.5 tons of the drug, worth about $380 million, concealed within a shipment of lemons.

These instances reveal an alarming trend: over 250 million Captagon pills were stopped from being smuggled last year alone, which is an 18-fold increase compared to numbers from four years ago.

Additionally, the drug is increasingly popular among young, underprivileged individuals in Jordan, where it’s sold at low prices. Even in Israel, the drug has found its way onto the streets, sold for around 50 Israeli New Shekels (NIS), just over $12 in the US, per pill. Gaza has become a hot market for the drug, particularly among addicted youth.

The worrying proliferation of Captagon has far-reaching implications. It’s not just fueling addictions but also enabling a vicious cycle of terror and violence.

As the drug continues to spread at an alarming rate, the challenges for both global law enforcement agencies and local communities continue to mount. The reality is this drug will enable the wicked to carry out more evil in our world.

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