Police thwarts weapons smuggling worth millions from Lebanon to Israel

The police have thwarted several such attempts in recent months, from Lebanon and from Jordan.

By Aryeh Savir, TPS

A police Special Forces unit thwarted the smuggling of 43 weapons from Lebanon into Israel, the largest weapons smuggling attempt in recent years, worth about NIS 2,700,000, the police stated Saturday night.

The Yagal unit of the Northern District Police, in cooperation with IDF observations, identified the smuggling from Lebanon to Israel near the village of Rajar, which is half in Israeli territory and the other half in Lebanon.

The IDF posted footage of two suspects carrying sacks on their backs in mountainous territory.

The police did not state if and how many smugglers were arrested in the incident.

The IDF is examining, among other things, the possibility that the smuggling attempt overnight Friday was carried out with the help of the Hezbollah terrorist organization, and police investigators are investigating those behind it on the Israeli side.

“The unit’s police officers operate throughout the northern district, all year round and in all weathers, in order to prevent and thwart smuggling of weapons and dangerous drugs into Israel,” the police stated.

“The activity of the police on the border prevents large quantities of dangerous weapons and drugs from reaching the inside the country and being used by criminal elements and terrorists for the purposes of terrorism, violence and trade.”

The police have thwarted several such attempts in recent months, from Lebanon and from Jordan.

Hezbollah has been previously exposed to be behind the smuggling of weapons and drugs into Israel.