TEHRAN, Iran — Iranian police in a single raid confiscated two tons of morphine from drug smugglers in a suburb of the capital Tehran, the semiofficial ISNA news agency reported Thursday.

Tehran province police chief Gen. Mohsen Khancherli, said two smugglers, including the ringleader of the smuggling gang, were arrested. He said one of the detainees was transferring the drugs to Tehran from the southwestern part of the country by truck.

The second detainee, the alleged ringleader, was co-ordinating the operation from another province, remotely, Khancherli said.

Iranian authorities often confiscate large quantities of narcotics, but the seizure is the biggest morphine bust in months.

Iran is the main route by which drug smugglers ship narcotics from the poppy fields of Afghanistan to Europe. Authorities confiscate hundreds of tons of narcotics — mostly opium — every year.

The Associated Press