Saudi Arabia bans Lebanese fruits and vegetables over drug smuggling concerns
Move taken after attempt to smuggle over 2.4 million amphetamine narcotic tablets foiled
Dubai: Saudi Arabia has announced that Lebanese vegetables and fruits will be banned from entering or crossing the Kingdom starting this Sunday.
The decision has been taken after an attempt to smuggle over 2.4 million amphetamine narcotic tablets into the country was foiled and seized by Saudi Customs on Friday, Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.
The tablets were hidden inside a pomegranate fruit shipment coming from Lebanon.
Five arrested
In a statement, Captain Mohammed Al Nujaidi, the official spokesperson of the General Directorate of Narcotics Control (GDNC), said that five persons were involved in the cases, four of whom are citizens while the fifth is an expat. All of them were arrested.
The detainees would first go through initial legal procedures prior to undergoing public prosecution, the statement said.