On Monday, the Lebanese Army announced that between July 15th and 17th, it had arrested 9 people attempting to smuggling fuel and medicine from Lebanon to Syria.
Having deployed in the Bekka, North, and South regions, the army arrested 8 Lebanese and 1 Palestinian and seized 3 motorcycles, 2 cars, 1 pickup truck, 1 van, and 1 tanker.
All of the vehicles were loaded with thousands of liters of fuel as well as various packets of medicines. There were about 11,200 liters of gasoline and 1,600 liters of diesel and a number of gas bottles.
“The seizures were handed over and investigations with the detainees were launched under the supervision of the judiciary,” the army said in its statement.
Even after raising the price of gasoline came with the expectation that the fuel crisis would subside, long queues are still forming in front of gas stations across Lebanon as people anticipate a gasoline shortage after the Eid al-Adha holiday.
Frustrated over the situation, a resident in Tripoli told The961, “As long as the price gasoline is higher in Syria [than in Lebanon], there will be no end to the smuggling crisis.”
Smuggling continues to be an issue the Lebanese government turns a blind eye to.
