Bags of cocaine from Ecuador seized by police at the Beirut port. (Credit: Internal Security Forces (ISF) website)
More than 25 kg of cocaine concealed in a shipment of bananas from Ecuador has been seized at the Port of Beirut, the Internal Security Forces (ISF) announced Saturday, without specifying the date on which the seizure took place.
In a statement, the ISF said that it had received "information about an international smuggling network, which was allegedly smuggling a large quantity of cocaine into Lebanon from Ecuador in a shipment of bananas."
After seizing the cargo, the ISF reported that it found 25.6 kg of the basic ingredient of cocaine, with a total value of "millions of dollars," hidden in the metal structure of the container. Efforts are underway to arrest the smugglers and those involved, the police said.
Seizures of drugs concealed in food shipments have increased in Lebanon of late. On Wednesday, police intercepted 27 kg of hashish hidden in coffee bags in Beirut. A week earlier, they seized nearly 150 kg of hashish hidden in bags of za'atar (a mixture of thyme and spices), sumac and keshek (fermented yoghurt).