The drug fentanyl is also spreading in Europe. So strong that even Interpol is now getting involved – with an urgent warning.
Frankfurt – It has long since triggered a crisis in the USA, and is now spreading more and more in Europe: fentanyl. The drug is a man-made opioid that can be administered for severe pain. However, the misuse of the drug is now increasing. The synthetic drug is said to be around 50 times stronger than heroin and even 100 times stronger than morphine.
The danger of the drug is already known in the USA. US officials recently held an emergency meeting with China about the drug. The raw materials for fentanyl are largely produced in China; the extremely strong opioid has already caused numerous deaths in the USA. While the fight is already underway overseas, warnings are now becoming increasingly loud in Europe. The “zombie drug” has already arrived in Germany and has caused experts to fear the worst. The nickname “zombie drug” comes from the attitude that users adopt due to the effect. For example, a slumped posture and uncontrolled movements can occur.
The drug fentanyl is also coming into focus in Europe – “even small amounts can be fatal”
The consumption of fentanyl is also increasing in Europe – and apparently so much that the opioid is now even bringing Interpol into action. “The fact is that fentanyl is already in Europe, is extremely potent and must be treated as an imminent threat,” said Interpol Secretary General Jürgen Stock World on Sunday. “Even small amounts of this drug can be deadly for users, but at the same time very profitable for the criminal networks behind its distribution,” he warned.
Interpol recently conducted the first global law enforcement survey on fentanyl. Initial findings showed that the drug and similar substances “are distributed or manufactured in all regions of the world, including Europe.” These included illicit and medicinal fentanyl in the form of powder, patches, tablets and liquids.
Although the current seizures in Europe are “nowhere near” the quantities in North America, they should “cause concern among law enforcement and health authorities due to the high addictive potential,” Stock said.
50 times stronger than heroin: Fentanyl claims thousands of lives in the USA
Fentanyl is a strong painkiller that is used, among other things, by cancer patients, but is also traded illegally. With chemicals manufactured primarily in China, it is often produced in Mexico and smuggled from there to the USA. In the United States, approximately 100,000 people die from a fentanyl overdose every year.
The federal government's drug commissioner, Burkhard Blienert (SPD), said World on Sunday: “An opioid crisis like in the USA and Canada will not repeat itself here, we fundamentally have different, better conditions.” The starting point of the fentanyl crisis in the USA was an excessive prescription of strong painkillers, in Germany this is the case far more cautious.
“Nevertheless, it would also be possible for us that heroin users would increasingly switch to cheaper and much more dangerous fentanyl,” said Blienert. More low-threshold offers for consumers are needed. “These include drug checking, rapid tests in drug consumption rooms and also the use of the emergency medication naloxone, which even medical laypeople can administer,” said the drug commissioner.
Reports of drastic cases of fentanyl are now becoming more and more common. In Austria, too, a mother complained after a death caused by the zombie drug: “The children are dying like flies”. (han/AFP)
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