Creating ISIS and Captagon

John R. Houk

Hat Tip: Tony Newbill

November 23, 2015

It has been some time since contributor pseudonym Tony Newbill has sent something to dig my teeth into. Tony usually deals with Conspiracy Theory issues; however this time it seems his email is a bit closer to Conspiracy rather than Theory.

The first link in the email is to a Youtube video of Ben Swann talking about proof obtained from Judicial Watch that the Obama Administration was instrumental in creating the viability of the Islamic terrorist organization ISIS/Daesh.

Benjamin "Ben" Swann (born July 17, 1978) is an American journalist. He has worked in New Mexico, Texas and Ohio.^[1] While at WXIX-TV in Cincinnati, Ohio, he produced a fact-checking series entitled Reality Check, which gave him national coverage for his reporting about controversial issues. Swann announced he was leaving WXIX-TV on May 31, 2013,^[2]and on May 30, 2013, he said he would launch a crowd source funded "Truth In Media" to continue production of his show through a Chicago production team.^[3] In June 2015, he joined CBS46 (WGCL-TV) in Atlanta as evening news anchor.^[4] READ THE REST (Ben Swann; Wikipedia; This page was last modified on 11/13/15 00:08)

Data connected to Swann:

o   Truth in Media

o   Ben Swann Bio on Truth in Media

o   Ben Swann’s Reality Check

o   Ben-Swann.com

Below is the Reality Check 3:55 story on the U.S. creating ISIS.

VIDEO: Reality Check: Proof U.S. Government Wanted ISIS To Emerge In Syria

Published by Ben Swann 

Published on Nov 19, 2015 

 There is so much debate over how the U.S. and other nations will stop ISIS but can these leaders be trusted? Ben Swann exposes secret DOD documents that prove the U.S. wanted ISIS to emerge in Syria.

And now to the next link in the Tony Newbill. The link is to an Inquisitor news story by Louis Babcock about how ISIS is using an addictive pill called Captagon. Evidently the Captagon has been around for some time. According to the Inquisitor article it gives one the euphoric feeling of invincibility.

For a history of Captagon’s original purpose Wikipedia has a good article. There you discover the scientific name is Fenethylline (or variations thereof). Apparently that which it was designed for has fallen out effective viability. These days the big money in Captagon production is in the illegal drug trade especially in the Middle East.

Captagon pills are displayed along with a cup of cocaine at an office of the Lebanese Internal Security Forces (ISF), Anti-Narcotics Division in Beirut on June 11, 2010. (Credit: JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images)

Here is some excerpts from a Forbes article that provides a clear present day application:

This week brought a wave of articles about the drug Captagon— it’s being billed as the drug that’s fueling Syria’s bloody war.  But Captagon is far from new, it isn’t the first time it’s been in the news, and the problem is bigger than Syria. Here’s what you need to know. 

 What is Captagon? 

 Captagon is one of several brand names for the drug compound fenethylline hydrochloride. Captagon is not a new drug. The Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Encyclopedia places its debut in 1961, when it was manufactured by Chemiewerk Homburg, a subsidiary of specialty chemicals company Degussa. The patent for its production dates to 1962, according to the Merck Index. 

 How does Captagon work? 

 Captagon is in the family of drugs known as amphetamines. These drugs are human-made but are chemically related to natural neurotransmitters like dopamine and epinephrine (aka adrenaline). When a person takes Captagon, their metabolism breaks the drug down to amphetamine itself, as well as to theophylline, a molecule that naturally occurs in small amounts in tea and that also has cardiac stimulating activity. 

 Amphetamine drugs stimulate the central nervous system, increasing alertness, boosting concentration and physical performance, and providing a feeling of well-being. In a BBC Arabic documentary that premiered earlier this fall, users described the intensity of a Captagon high to filmmakers in no uncertain terms: “I felt like I own the world, high,” one said. “Like I have power nobody has. A really nice feeling.” And another had this to say: “There was no fear anymore after I took Captagon.” 

 … 

 … But by the 1980s the medical community had determined that Captagon’s addictive properties outweighed its clinical benefits. At that point it was banned in most countries. Long-term amphetamine users can suffer from side effects such as extreme depression, sleep deprivation, heart and blood vessel toxicity, and malnutrition, according to the National Criminal Justice Reference Service. 

 … 

 … Making Captagon takes “only basic knowledge of chemistry and a few scales,” Lebanese psychiatrist Ramzi Haddad told Reuters. And apparently Captagon has enough brand recognition that counterfeit pills are commonly found in authorities’ drug seizures. One analysis of fake Captagon found no fenethylline hydrochloride (the true active ingredient). … 

 … 

 … Captagon means big money for Syria- a major producer of the drug. … READ ENTIRETY (What You Need To Know About Captagon, The Drug Of Choice In War-Torn Syria; By Carmen Drahl; Forbes; 11/21/15 05:01 AM)

Without further ado below is the Newbill link to the Inquisitor.

JRH 11/23/15

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Syrian War Drug: What Effects Does This Drug Have On Fighters In Syria? [Video]

By Louis Babcock

November 20, 2015

Inquisitor

A Syrian war drug is turning fighters in Syria into soldiers with almost superhuman abilities. The drug is call Captagon. Captagon is a potent amphetamine tablet and is considered highly addictive. When taken, Syrian fighters are able to stay awake for multiple days, and it also allows them to kill with recklessness. The drug also affects the mind in such a way that Syrian fighters feel nothing when they kill someone. Captagon essentially makes the person numb to any of the feelings a person would get when killing another human. The BBC was doing a documentary in September, and three men who have used the drug spoke about how it made them feel.

“You can’t sleep or even close your eyes, forget about it. And whatever you take to stop it, nothing can stop it.” 

 “I felt like I own the world high. Like I have power nobody has. A really nice feeling.” 

 “There was no fear anymore after I took Captagon.”

VIDEO: The Drug Fueling Conflict In Syria (28:56)

Posted by Journeyman Pictures 

Published on Sep 21, 2015 

 Syria's War Drug: A look inside production of Captagon, the powerful amphetamine being used by soldiers in Syria. … There is more related to Journeyman Pictures

In 2014, Reuters did a report on how the Syrian war has turned Syria into a major drug producer in the region. An excerpt from the Reuters report is below.

“Syrian government forces and rebel groups each say the other uses Captagon to endure protracted engagements without sleep, while clinicians say ordinary Syrians are increasingly experimenting with the pills, which sell for between $5 and $20.”

A drug control officer spoke about what he has seen in people who have used the drug.

“We would beat them, and they wouldn’t feel the pain. Many of them would laugh while we were dealing them heavy blows. We would leave the prisoners for about 48 hours without questioning them while the effects of Captagon wore off, and then interrogation would become easier.”

Captagon started to be used medically in the 1960s. The drug was used in treating hyperactivity, sleep disorders, and depression. Due to the potency and addictiveness of Captagon, a ban was placed on it only 20 years later. In the United States, Captagon is considered a Schedule I drug.

Masood Karimipour, the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime regional representative, spoke with Voice Of America about the Syrian drug.

“Syria is a tremendous problem in that it’s a collapsed security sector, because of its porous borders, because of the presence of so many criminal elements and organized networks. There’s a great deal of trafficking being done of all sorts of illicit goods — guns, drugs, money, people. But what is being manufactured there and who is doing the manufacturing, that’s not something we have visibility into from a distance.”

The illegal drug trade, specifically, Captagon, has enabled millions of dollars to be brought into Syria. The money from the illegal drug business has allowed Syrian fighters to get access to better weapons. Turkey has put a dent in the Captagon trade. On the border of Turkey and Syria, Turkey officials were able to obtain 11 million tablets of Captagon. The 10.9 million tablets hold a value of between $55 million and $220 million. The 10.9 million tablets were confiscated in two different raids. In the first raid, Turkey was able to capture 7.3 million tablets while Turkey captured 3.6 million tablets in the second raid. The pills were going to be smuggled out to the countries in the Persian Gulf.

Even though the drug is becoming popular among Syrian fighters, Saudi Arabia is still the main importer. According to Reuters, seven tons of Captagon were imported into Saudi Arabia in 2010. It is said that up to 50,000 Saudis end up in drug treatment each year from the use of Captagon.

Is this Syrian war drug going to become a bigger problem in the Syria conflict? With Syrian refugees flooding into Europe, will we begin to see Captagon use increase there?

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Creating ISIS and Captagon

John R. Houk

Hat Tip: Tony Newbill

November 23, 2015

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Syrian War Drug: What Effects Does This Drug Have On Fighters In Syria? [Video]

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