Captagon is an amphetamine-based drug produced and consumed in the Middle East. Tens of millions of pills have been seized in recent years in the Gulf countries, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq, revealing widespread trafficking in the region.
Who uses this substance? What are its effects ? Who manufactures captagon and who benefits from its illicit trade? What geopolitical tensions does the captagon reveal? And what challenge does it represent for States trying to combat its trafficking and its use, especially among young people? Nicolas Falez, Nicolas Feldmann and Nicolas Keraudren investigated in Lebanon, Jordan and Kuwait to trace the captagon trail.
Fenethylline (BAN, USAN) is a codrug of amphetamine and theophylline and a prodrug to both. It is also spelled phenethylline and fenetylline (INN); other names for it are amphetaminoethyltheophylline and amfetyline. The drug was marketed for use as a psychostimulant under the brand names Captagon, Biocapton, and Fitton. It is now illegal in most countries and is produced primarily for illicit use. Syria is considered to be the world’s largest producer of the drug, contributing 80% of its global supplies. Mandrax Quaalude methaqualone