The complex politics of cannabis make for some very strange bedfellows, and the latest case is no exception. The United States Drug Enforcement Administration approved the New Jersey-based organization Catalent to receive imported cannabis for research purposes.

Catalent Pharma Solutions, which is classified as a Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO), is based out of Somerset, New Jersey, but the site it registered with the DEA is in Kansas City, Missouri. The Federal Notice released by the Administration states:

A number of parties are behind Alternativet’s bill to legalise the drug for medicinal use

It's already been a known fact that marijuana can work wonders most especially when it comes to the medical field. It is known to cure cancer and chronic illnesses, it is also said to reduce the symptoms of several mental illnesses. As per Chronic Pain Solutions, a recent study revealed that weed is actually better then Adderall in reliving ADHD.

General cargo vessel MUNZUR was intercepted by Italian police on December 2 in Tyrrhenian sea northeast of Pantelleria island, near Sicily, on a suspicion of drug trafficking.

A huge quantity of hashish was found, some 11 tons divided into 500 parcels. It was a final stage of an international operation, involving Spain, Portugal, Greek and Italian drug enforcement agencies and Europol.

Hoisting and waving handmade signs reading “Decrim 4 Athens,” “We want decrim,” “We are not criminals” and “Stop the war on a plant,” about two dozen advocates of local marijuana decriminalization stepped up their efforts Tuesday evening in front of City Hall in downtown Athens, holding a demonstration in advance of the regular monthly meeting of the Athens-Clarke County mayor and commission.

One almost never sees potent cannabis plants flowering in public and while this was a common sight almost everywhere only 80 years ago, it is now banned in most corners of the earth. Until recently, the Hash Marihuana & Hemp Museums in Amsterdam and Barcelona, the Cannabis College in Amsterdam, the Hemp Museum in Berlin, and the Museo Della Civilta Contadina in Bologna were the only places in the world either solely devoted to the heyday of cannabis, or actually permitted to display real cannabis plants.

By Nicolas Delaunay

Once in his greenhouse in a remote Dutch village, Doede de Jong proudly nurtured a thriving cannabis crop to sell to local users. Now only five plants remain, after the police moved in.

Yet the 66-year-old Dutchman remains unbowed after symbolically winning a court case despite deliberately flouting the country's liberal drugs laws.

In a verdict that could have major implications for cannabis growers in The Netherlands, a court last month found De Jong guilty of breaking the law, which allows individuals to grow a maximum of only five plants each.

Map shows most people are seeking treatment for cannabis and opioids. Image / RecoveryBrands

A new drug map built on data from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) reveals New Zealand as one of the world's highest cannabis consumers, and the highest country for drug rehabilitation.

Dutch municipalities are renewing their efforts to end a nationwide ban on regulated cannabis cultivation. The Association of Dutch Municipalities is advocating for the introduction of a municipal permits system that gives the government control over the entire cannabis chain – sale, use and production.

This is according to the report on an eight month’s long study done by an Association work group, consisting of seven mayors and an alderman, the Volkskrant reports. The newspaper calls this the local authorities’ most serious attempt to get rid of the current tolerance policy, which states that cannabis may be sold and used in coffee shops, but the cultivation is illegal.

The crew of a Royal Navy warship seized around £3m worth of cannabis during a security patrol in the Mediterranean.

The Lynx helicopter from Portsmouth-based frigate HMS Richmond was sent in to investigate after spotting a suspected drug smuggling boat. With Richmond nearby, her Royal Marine boarding team was sent into action. The crew of the smuggling vessel then threw their drugs shipment - which would have had a street value of £3m overboard and fled. Richmond’s team recovered 1,015kg of cannabis bound for mainland Europe.