Newsbriefing – Week of 25 March

Nearly 750 military staff, mostly low-ranking officers, have reportedly perished since the Mexican government launched the “war on drugs” in 2006. Tamaulipas, a state located on the US-Mexico border accounts for the state where most of the most military deaths occurred. The Romanian police seized more than a ton of high-quality cocaine in a boat…

Newsbriefing – Week of 18 March

During the ministerial segment of the 62nd session of the CND, the Gambian Minister of the Interior announced that his government firmly opposed the decriminalisation of cannabis use highlighting that the drug was responsible for most of the drug-connected crimes in the Gambia. On Monday, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro started off his official visit to…

Newsbriefing – Week of 11 March

On Monday, the U.S Customs and Border Protection announced the seizure of 1.5 tonnes of cocaine, the biggest shipment of cocaine seized in New York and New Jersey in 25 years, in the Port of New York-Newark. The cocaine, which has an estimated street value of $77 million, was hidden in a shipping container originating…

Newsbriefing – Week of 4 March

In coordination with the National Gendarmerie of Argentina, the Bolivian police arrested in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, an Argentinian drug-trafficker dubbed the “Chapo Guzmán” of South America. The man was reportedly trafficking drugs from Bolivia to Argentina using small planes and he had managed to escape from jail several times with the help…

Newsbriefing – Week of 25 February

Nigeria’s president in office Muhammad Buhari won the 2019 election with 15.2 million votes compared with 11.3 million votes for his opponent. At the announcement of the results, the opposition party claimed that the vote was manipulated by the ruling party. Iván Duque announced that the government of Colombia’s new security plan will not include…

Newsbriefing – Week of 18 February

The trial of the “Air Cocaine” drug-trafficking case started on 18 February in Aix-en-Provence, France. The case involves the seizure of 680 kilos of cocaine on board of a private jet in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic back in 2013. Both the pilots and passengers are facing up severe sentences. The kidnapping and assassination of three…

Newsbriefing – Week of 11 February

The World Health Organization (WHO) has suggested the reclassification of cannabis as Schedule 1 of the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs. At least half of the 53 members of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs will have to ratify the proposed amendments, for the proposition to be accepted. However, many of these countries prohibit the use…

Newsbriefing – Week of 4 February

In 2018, the port of Rotterdam reached a peak in cocaine seizure with 19 tonnes. Of these, 4 tonnes were secured in December only. Most of the loads seized come from South America. On Tuesday, the UN Security Council discussed the pressing issue of transnational maritime crime. At this occasion the UNODC director highlighted the…

Newsbriefing – Week of 28 January

On January 28, a workshop on Trafficking in Persons was held in Abuja, Nigeria. At this occasion, the Labour Migration Expert of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) discussed Alliance 8.7, a global network established in partnership with the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) with the aim of reducing child labour…

Newsbriefing – Week of 21 January

Colombia’s National Liberation Army (ELN) claimed responsibility for the car bomb attack which killed over 20 members of the Santander National Police Academy. Colombian president Ivan Duque promised to bring the perpetrators, deemed as terrorists, to justice. On January 23, the president of the National Assembly, Juan Guaidó declared himself as interim president of Venezuela,…