Iran re-elected to UN anti-drug board

Iran has been re-elected as a member of the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) by the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) for a five-year term, reported Press TV.

Dr. Hamid Qods, nominated by Iran and the World Health Organization, won a majority vote of the ECOSOC and was re-elected as a member of the INCB on Wednesday.

The International Narcotics Control Board is an independent supervisory body for the implementation of the UN drug conventions and collaborates with the United Nations International Drug Control Program (UNDCP).

The Board consists of 13 members elected by the ECOSOC to serve for a five-year term.

Dr. Qods has been a member of the INCB since 1992 and has also served as president of the board.

According to the United Nations, Iran ranks first among all countries in shutting down drug routes into its territory.

With a 900-kilometer (560-mile) common border with Afghanistan, Iran has been used as the main conduit for smuggling Afghan drugs to narcotic kingpins in Europe.

The war on the narcotics trade originating from Afghanistan has claimed the lives of nearly 3,700 Iranian law-enforcement officers over the past 30 years.

Iran has spent more than $700 millions to seal its borders and prevent the transit of illicit drugs destined for European, Middle Eastern and Central Asian countries.


/Trend/