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Turkey tackles extensive synthetic drug troubles

Bonsai, a synthetic cannabis, has become one of the most popular — and dangerous — drugs in Turkey.
Turkish anti-narcotics police officers search a house during a drug raid in Istanbul, Turkey, January 16, 2018. REUTERS/Osman Orsal - RC1ED4104A00

ISTANBUL — On a hill in Istanbul’s Uskudar district, young men loiter on garbage-filled corners in the Selamsiz neighborhood. One man in a black T-shirt stumbles and falls on another man, who leans on a dilapidated car. The graffiti on the walls a few months ago has now been erased, but it told of a community mired in and fighting the tragedy of the illicit drug trade.

“No to bonsai. From the People of Selamsiz.”

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