Myanmar torches $300m of drugs in declining annual haul

Yangon: Myanmar s junta torched seized narcotics worth an estimated $300 million on Thursday, but a senior police officer said drug hauls were plungin...

Yangon: Myanmar's junta torched seized narcotics worth an estimated $300 million on Thursday, but a senior police officer said drug hauls were plunging because of intensifying fighting in the country's civil war.

When the junta seized power in a 2021 coup it sparked conflict between the military and a myriad of opponents, with all sides accused of filling their war chests with proceeds from black market businesses.

Drug production, unregulated mining and online scam centres have all flourished in the chaos since the democratic government was toppled, analysts say.

Myanmar's home affairs ministry burned confiscated narcotics in three locations across the country on Thursday, which anti-drug police in the capital Naypyidaw said were worth nearly $298 million.

The haul -- incinerated to mark International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking -- was worth roughly $50 million less than last year's and $150 million less than the 2023 figure.