Chuck Holton | From Jerusalem
I'm coming to you from my balcony in Jerusalem, just a stone’s throw from the Old City. It’s always good to be back in the land—especially when there’s this much going on.
Today’s update has a lot of layers: drug trafficking, terror funding, Arab clan leaders turning against the Palestinian Authority, and Qatar playing puppet master behind the scenes. We’re going to peel it all back, so buckle up.
The Houthis’ New Hustle: Peddling Captagon
Let’s start with the Houthis—Yemen’s Iranian-backed rebel thugs—who’ve found themselves running low on funding. Their pipeline of weapons and money from Iran and Russia is starting to dry up, and when the usual donors pull back, these groups always seem to get creative.
Their new revenue stream? Captagon.
If you’ve never heard of it, Captagon is a powerful stimulant. Originally created in the ‘60s for treating ADHD and narcolepsy, it was banned in most countries by the 1980s due to how addictive it was. But like any bad idea, it’s made a comeback—especially in the Middle East. Today’s version is an unpredictable cocktail of amphetamines, caffeine, and God knows what else. It might keep you awake for 48 hours… or stop your heart. Literally.
Captagon became one of Syria’s most lucrative exports under the Assad regime. Countries like Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and the UAE are regularly seizing millions of pills hidden in cargo trucks. Now, it seems the Houthis have entered the trade—either producing or trafficking the pills to fund their terror operations.
And no, these aren’t being whipped up in clean pharmaceutical labs. Think barnyards and basements. If the Houthis are making it, you'd be nuts to put it in your body.
The implications? Huge. Captagon isn’t just a vice—it’s a weapon. Militant groups have used it for years to suppress fear and exhaustion in combat. It’s how you get someone to run into gunfire like a zombie.