Drug drones: how Syria is dropping narcotics and weapons into Jordan

Last year, 12 drones carrying drugs, weapons, and explosives from Syria were intercepted at the border. There has only been one instance of the Syrians announcing a Jordanian drone interception, made earlier this year.

The use of drones in smuggling from Syria is still limited. They are still used for training and reconnaissance, such as surveying smuggling routes, or providing in-time intelligence during smuggling operations.

This is backed up by local sources, who indicate that land-based smuggling remains the preferred option, owing to its familiarity and established effectiveness. Yet this illicit industry can be a fast-changing one.

The advantage of drones

Jordanian forces have intensified their crackdown on smugglers over the past year and bolstered security on the border with Syria, in the hope of significantly reshaping the regional narcotics landscape.

In response, Syrian drug traffickers (who often operate with the Syrian regime's protection) have adjusted their tactics to evade detection. The notable increase in drone activity suggests that this is one way of them doing so.

Drones used to smuggle narcotics are known to have higher success rates than traditional methods. According to the Syrian civil society organisation Etana, about one in three drone attempts succeed.

Drones present a formidable challenge to radar systems, their small size giving only a small radar signature. Where there is limited technology at border positions, guards rely on visual spotters to detect these unmanned aerial vehicles.

Staying one step ahead

A more recent advance is that drones are now able to fly autonomously at night, making interception even more difficult since visual spotting would require night-vision goggles.

Local sources also indicate that smugglers are using diversionary tactics to enhance their success rates, such as by deploying a low-cost drone as a decoy, to distract authorities from the more significant operation elsewhere.

Drones intercepted on 28 June and 28 August 2023 were found empty, suggesting that they were the distraction, while more substantial operations involving multiple drones loaded with drugs passed by somewhere else, undetected.

Costing around $1,000, these drones give smugglers a cost-effective solution and represent a modest investment for potentially bumper returns.

Many drones also come with autonomous return functionality, meaning they return to their operators after a delivery, to be reused. This maximising cost efficiency.

With regime support

Multiple sources have revealed that the Syrian army—particularly the 5th and 4th Brigades—plus some Hezbollah affiliates, are key to the use of drones in narcotics smuggling, including their acquisition, training, and maintenance.

This support helps to make the drones more accessible to smuggling networks. While overland smuggling often follows established routes and uses the same border crossings, drones offer unparalleled flexibility.

They can be launched from virtually anywhere within a given range. This lets smugglers change their operational sites for enhanced security and adaptability. This makes it more difficult to predict and intercept their activities.

An additional perk for smugglers is that a drone's origins can be difficult to trace, and unlike people, they cannot be interrogated for information about their operators.

Carrying crystal meth

Based on interceptions by Jordan over recent months, the drones are primarily used to smuggle highly addictive drugs, explosives, and weapons. This gives the Jordanians a big security problem.

Of the 12 drones intercepted last year, many were carrying the highly addictive substance crystal meth, which is often transported in powdered form.

This has a substantially higher street value than other drugs (seven times more than Captagon, and 25 times more than hashish). It can be adulterated with common substances like caffeine and theophylline to produce counterfeit Captagon pills.

The influx of crystal meth raises concerns that Jordan could go from being a transit hub to a consumption capital, or even production centre.

Explosives and weapons

At least three drones intercepted over the past year were found to be transporting weaponry, including M4 rifles, hand grenades, and explosives.

This is a worry, because weapons smuggling from Syria to Jordan has not been an issue in the past.

The discovery of these weapons-smuggling drones raises questions about their intended usage, the intended recipients, and their potential to undermine Jordanian security. For instance, were they bound for criminal gangs, or terrorist groups?

Well-informed sources strongly suggest that numerous drones have managed to evade detection, enter Jordan, and reach their intended targets. It is not known whether they were carrying weapons, drugs, or both.

It is likely that smugglers' tactics and capabilities in the field of drone technology will continue to evolve, becoming more refined.

As a result, the West may need to bolster Jordan's technical border capabilities and enhance its intelligence-gathering capacity if it is to effectively counter the multifaceted threats these drones now pose to its national security.