IRAN KILLS TWO DRUG TRAFFICKERS, ARRESTS RINGLEADER

SHIRAZ, Iran, July 2 (Reuters) - Police killed two members of a drug gang
and arrested their ringleader in a shootout in southern Iran, a police
official said on Sunday.

Brigadier-General Hossein Zolfaqari told reporters in the southern city of
Shiraz that the gang of "bandits," led by druglord Amir Narouie, were
responsible for kidnappings and distribution of drugs.

He said members of Narouie's clan were involved in a number of kidnappings
of foreign tourists in drug-infested regions of southeastern Iran last year.

The general said more than 380 kg (836-lb) of drugs, mainly hashish, had
been seized from the gang along with weapons.

Iran is a main transit route for drugs from Afghanistan and Pakistan, the
so-called "Golden Crescent," to the lucrative markets of Europe and the
oil-rich Arab states.

The country also faces its own drug abuse problem with an estimated two
million addicts and casual users in a population of more than 60 million.