Lebanon Busts Drugs Smuggling Operation Bound to Saudi Arabia

Arab World

June 19th, 4:50am

Beirut - Asharq Al-Awsat

Lebanese soldiers stand guard in front of destroyed ships at the scene of the Beirut port explosion in August 2020. (AP)

Lebanese authorities foiled on Friday an attempt to smuggle millions of captagon pills to Saudi Arabia. Authorities at Beirut port discovered the shipment that was concealed in two containers loaded with construction material. Caretaker Interior Minister Mohammed Fahmi revealed that the shipment was destined to the Saudi city of Jeddah. He urged countries to restore their trust in Lebanon and for citizens to cooperate with the security forces to that end. He congratulated the customs authorities for discovering the drugs, underscoring the coordination between all security agencies to crackdown on smuggling. Moreover, he said authorities reserve the right to withhold the names of detained suspects, adding that two ringleaders have been arrested for their involvement in these illicit activities. Investigations are underway to arrest their accomplices. Just days ago, the Internal Security Forces announced another drug bust. They seized four million captagon pills, or 37.2 kilograms, that were hidden in small electrical water pumps and prepared to be shipped to Saudi Arabia. In April, the Kingdom announced that it was suspending the import of agricultural products from Lebanon after local authorities seized drugs that were concealed in a pomegranate shipment.

from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/3035426/lebanon-busts-drugs-smuggling-operation-bound-saudi-arabia