OFFICIAL - DRUGS TOP SOCIAL PROBLEM

TEHRAN, Iran, May 4 (UPI) - An Iranian government official says his
country has a drug problem, with more than 100,000 prisoners now in
custody convicted on drug charges.

Rida Sarami, director-general of the Anti-Drug Statistical Department,
told reporters today that 60 per cent of the prisoners in Iran were
convicted in drug-related cases.

Sarami said Iran seized and confiscated more than 186 tons of drugs
during last Persian year (which ended on March 21) and arrested
180,000 drug smugglers. He noted that 2,700 Iranian police officers
were killed during the past two decades in their fight to control
drug trafficking.

He said 90 members of the Iranian Interior Security forces were killed
in clashes with drug smugglers near the border ``while 10 tons of
various kinds of drugs were seized during the first month of the
(Iranian) year,'' meaning April.

Iran is the most common route through which drugs are smuggled from
Afghanistan to the Gulf and European countries.

Iran's recent efforts to combat drug trafficking have drawn plaudits
from the United Nations and other international organizations.

However, Mohammed Falah, secretary of the anti-drug committee, warned
that the Iranian government is not capable of facing the drug problem
alone.

Falah noted in published remarks today that ``despite imposing the
death sentence, drug traffickers continue their activities and
confronting them create big problems to us.''

He said ``poverty, unemployment, social conditions and divorce are the
main factors leading to drug addiction in Iran.''

He said drug addicts in the Persian state have reached 1.2
million.