Police have arrested 70 people in Brighton and Hove's largest drugs crackdown.

Raids have been going on for the past two weeks but The Argus agreed to a news blackout to avoid alerting suspects.

In one raid, police found a suspect in the shower and a line of cocaine waiting for him on a coffee table.

In another, officers snatched a syringe full of drugs from the hand of a user.

Targets including pushers and, for the first time, regular drug users, a move designed to dry-up demand so that the pushers fade away.

Counselling and rehabilitation services are being offered to help them beat their habits.

So far 42 people have been charged with drugs-related offences and a further 26 with other crimes including burglary and robbery.

Charges include supplying cocaine and heroine and cultivating cannabis.

Operation Nine was the result of a four-month intelligence gathering and investigative operation aimed at slashing drug dealing and drug related crime in the city.

Detective Chief Inspector Graham Bartlett, head of the city's CID, said: "Brighton and Hove has the unenviable title of being the drugs death capital of the UK, with more deaths from drug overdoses in the city than even Liverpool and London.

"The fact that there are such high numbers of addicts means there is a huge impact on all the people in the city, not just the health implications for the addicts themselves but for everyone else who may become a victim of crime as a result of addicts resorting to criminal behaviour to feed their habit.

"We know the vast majority of burglaries, robberies, theft and vehicle crime committed in the city are committed to enable drug users to be able to fund their addiction.

"We have been very good in the past at running operations which tackle drug dealers but, although there may be a short-term reprieve, that action doesn't necessarily impact in the longer term on the quality of life for the community as a whole.

"The drugs market will always re-emerge if the demand is still there.

"Operation Nine has been unique as we have targeted both supply and demand - dealers and users."

The two-week arrest phase started on Monday of last week and has seen an average of 105 officers each weekday conducting raids and executing search warrants at dozens of addresses across the city.

During the course of the last fortnight, officers have seized in excess of 850g of amphetamine, 16 kg of cannabis, 1 kg of heroin, crack cocaine, firearms ammunition and cash as well as the proceeds of crime such as stolen credit cards, cash and goods.

Chief Superintendent Jeremy Paine, Brighton and Hove's police commander, said: "The police and the city's Drug and Alcohol Action Team (DAAT) have been awarded £112,000 from the Home Office for an innovative project to help more drug users get the care and support they need.

"This means Operation Nine is just the start. We will sustain this work on drugs to deliver tangible improvements for the community.

"And we will continue to be relentless in locking up those dealers who make a profit from the misery of others."

Mr Paine urged anyone with information about drugs activity or drugs-related crime to contact Sussex Police on 0845 6070 999.