RT
The Lebanese were surprised by the circulation of pictures of drugs smuggled from the country to the capital of the Congo, Kinshasa, and that they are sold in dollars at a price nearly 10 times their value, although their price in the national currency is still fixed on them.
The pictures were published on social media, accompanied with the circulation of news of a dispute that occurred between the security apparatus of “Rafik Hariri” airport, the Inspection Department, and the Internal Security Forces regarding the smuggling of medicines by a female traveler heading to Africa, before the two security services issued an explanation in which they denied the matter.
The airport security service said: “Since the date of the outbreak of the Corona pandemic until today, more than 30 smuggling operations have been seized with people, most of them non-Lebanese, through the airport,” stressing its keenness to implement laws and prevent smuggling to and from Lebanon.
In turn, Lebanon’s ambassador to the Congo Haitham Ibrahim commented, saying: “Before the Corona crisis and the loss of medicines in Lebanon, medicines from Kinshasa pharmacies were arriving from several countries, including Lebanon, as this country does not manufacture medicines.”
He added, “Since the circumstances today are exceptional in Lebanon and the medicines are supported, the issue was highlighted as the pictures spread, which prompted the Lebanese embassy, in coordination with the Lebanese Community Committee in Kinshasa, to conduct some investigations on the subject, and it appeared that these medicines reach the Congo not only by individuals. In fact, there are some companies that bring subsidized medicines from Lebanon by buying them from pharmacies and distributing companies, and 90% of them are smuggled through the Lebanese border crossings. “
He continued: “We will move towards the authorities in the Congo to find out the types of medicines that have arrived and their quantities.”
For his part, the head of the Drug Importers Syndicate, Karim Jabara, said, “It seems that these quantities were bought by a number of people from dispersed pharmacies in Lebanon, and security at the airport had previously seized numerous attempts to smuggle medicines in bags, and this is a similar case.”
Jabara stressed, “the importance of the role of security forces at the airport, which has the duty to inspect bags, and it has received a decision from the Ministry of Health asking them to prevent any traveler from taking out an amount of medicine that exceeds the need for a month of treatment.”
Source: “The Lebanese Annahar”
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