Syria’s Ministry of Information has revoked the BBC’s media accreditation, days after the British public broadcaster aired a report linking members of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s family and senior army officials to the production and smuggling of illicit drugs.
The documentary, broadcast late last month, describes a multibillion dollar business involving the highly addictive amphetamine known as Captagon.
The ministry said it revoked the BBC’s accreditation after repeated warnings about what it claimed were “misleading reports relying on statements and testimonies from terrorist entities and those hostile to Syria.”
The ministry made no mention of the documentary and did not back up its claims of biased reporting.
The BBC dismissed the ministry’s allegations, saying it provides impartial and independent journalism.
“We speak to people across the political spectrum to establish the facts,” the BBC said in a statement e-mailed to The Associated Press over the weekend. ”We will continue to provide impartial news and information to our audiences across the Arabic-speaking world.”
The BBC’s radio and television correspondents, as well as its videographer, lost their accreditation.
The production and smuggling of Captagon pills has blossomed in war-torn Syria in the past few years.
Experts say it is a source of revenue for the country’s crippled economy and sanctioned leadership. Neighboring Jordan and Saudi Arabia, as well as other Gulf countries, have long complained about the scourge of the cheap drugs from Syria.
Captagon is used as a recreational drug, but also by fighters on the battlefield and by manual workers.
The UK, the US and the EU have sanctioned a handful of drug kingpins and close associates of al-Assad for their involvement in the trade.
The Syrian government denies any involvement in the production of Captagon. A Syrian lawmaker last month said that Syria has been used as a transit state for Captagon and other drugs, and accused opposition groups of running the industry.
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