Belgium Battles Drug Gangs, Seizes Record 109.9 Tonnes Of Cocaine In 2022
NDTV
Belgium's main container terminal is now seen as the biggest route for illegal drugs into Europe, with 109.9 tonnes seized in 2022.
Cocaine seizures at the port of Antwerp, the main gateway for illegal drugs into Europe, hit a new record last year, as Belgian and Dutch authorities face mounting concern over the power of violent international gangs.
The annual figures for drug busts in Belgium and the Netherlands were released on Tuesday, one day after an 11-year-old girl was shot dead in a gun attack on an Antwerp home that the city's mayor dubbed the latest outrage in an ongoing "drug war".
Belgium's main container terminal is now seen as the biggest route for illegal drugs into Europe, with 109.9 tonnes seized in 2022 and an unknown but probably much larger quantity reaching the market.
Seizures in 2022 were up from 89.5 tonnes last year. Across the Netherlands border, in nearby Rotterdam and Vlissingen, Dutch police battling the same gangs intercepted a further 52.5 tonnes. After Belgium and Spain, the Netherlands is Europe's third largest drugs gateway.
