International efforts through INCB Operation Zodiac disrupt benzodiazepine trafficking
Vienna, 17 July 2024 - A global special operation led by the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB), in collaboration with 110 national law and regulatory enforcement agencies and international partner organizations, has successfully detected and disrupted global networks trafficking non-medical benzodiazepines, resulting in over 460 seizures involving 58 countries and territories worldwide.
Operation Zodiac targeted non-medical benzodiazepines, including those diverted from the legitimate pharmaceutical industry, substandard, falsified or otherwise illicitly manufactured, and novel new benzodiazepines with no known legitimate uses. The operation resulted in 465 seizures over the four-week period, amounting to 286,000 tablets, as well as 30 kg and 300 ml of seized benzodiazepines.
Prof. Jallal Toufiq, INCB President, noted that, "trafficking in illicitly manufactured pharmaceutical products has shifted from so-called life-style drugs to life-saving drugs, referring to non-medical benzodiazepines and opioids increasing identified in seized in the form of pharmaceutical preparations. Governments are currently at a disadvantage when it comes to detection and interdiction of dangerous drugs often in the guise of legitimate pharmaceutical products." To address the growing problem of novel benzodiazepines the Board recently released its list of benzodiazepines and related new psychoactive substances with no known legitimate uses for use by government and industry partners.
Operation Zodiac was conducted under the Global Rapid Interdiction of Dangerous Substances (GRIDS) Programme's Project ION and OPIOIDS Project. Support and deconfliction was received from INCB international and regional partners including the Universal Postal Union (UPU), the World Customs Organization (WCO), the Caribbean Community Implementation Agency for Crime and Security (CARICOM IMPACS), the Gulf Criminal Information Centre to Combat Drugs (GCC), the Pacific Transnational Crime Coordination Centre (PTCCC) and the Oceania Customs Organization (OCO).
Photo: Seizure of benzodiazepines and tramadol tablets by Nigeria NDLEA as part of Operation Zodiac
The Board commends the efforts of the agencies and partners involved in Operation Zodiac. Through GRIDS Programme operations that link capacity building, state-of-the-art targeting platforms, and intelligence sharing through strategic partnerships, INCB is supporting Member States in countering illicit drug trafficking and protecting the health and wellbeing of communities worldwide from emerging dangerous synthetic drugs.
INCB is the independent, quasi-judicial body charged with promoting and monitoring Government compliance with the three international drug control conventions: the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances, and the 1988 Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances. Established by the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961, the thirteen members of the Board are elected in a personal capacity by the Economic and Social Council for terms of five years.