A few days ago police in the United Arab Emirates intercepted a huge haul of illegal Captagon pills worth one billion dollars. It’s an addictive party drug that’s sweeping across the Middle East.

A BBC investigation has found that most of the world’s supply of the drug is coming from Syria - and the trade has links to the highest levels of the Syrian government, something the Assad regime denies. We speak to Emir Nadir, a BBC journalist, who helped expose the scandal around what’s sometimes called “the poor man’s cocaine”.

Plus, the Women’s Tennis Association returns to hosting tournaments in China. Has anything changed since it boycotted the country four years ago following the treatment of top player, Peng Shuai?

Email: whatintheworld@bbc.co.uk WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Producers: Alex Rhodes, Julia Ross-Roy and Maria Clara Montoya Editors: Emily Horler and Simon Peeks

Is Syria’s government pushing an addictive party drug? 13:11 Share

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Is Syria’s government pushing an addictive party drug?