Download 3 tons of Egypt-bound drugs discovered at Beirut port

Dec. 29, 2015
3 tons of Egypt-bound drugs discovered at Beirut port
The Daily Star
BEIRUT: Customs officials Tuesday discovered three tons of Captagon pills and hash at
the Beirut port destined for Egypt, Lebanon's finance minister said.
In a televised news conference from the port, Ali Hasan Khalil praised the Customs
Department over the massive bust, without saying if anyone was arrested over the case.
“Lebanon has been able to protect its reputation in the war on drugs as it has been
successful this year in stopping many drug smuggling attempts,” he said.
He pledged that Lebanon will not become a safe passage for drug smugglers.
Tuesday's bust came one day after a 28-year-old Brazilian man was stopped by Customs
officers for allegedly attempting to smuggle two kilos of cocaine through the Rafik Hariri
International Airport in Beirut.
A source at the airport told The Daily Star that the cocaine, in vacuum-sealed plastic
bags, was hidden in two pieces of luggage which were put in a bigger suitcase.
Airport authorities have recently stepped up efforts to thwart the smuggling of drugs
through the facility. Last month they arrested a Peruvian national who swallowed a
quantity of condoms filled with liquid cocaine.