Lebanon army, Syrian traffickers clash as anti-smuggling efforts ramp up
Authorities in Lebanon and Syria have stepped up their fight against the Captagon trade following the fall of the Assad regime, which heavily relied on the industry as one of its major sources of income.
BEIRUT — Clashes between Lebanon’s army and armed Syrians erupted near the border with Syria on Sunday as both Lebanese and Syrian authorities step up their fight against the Captagon trade.
The Lebanese army announced in a post on X Sunday that one of its soldiers was slightly injured after armed Syrians opened fire from the Syrian side at a military patrol near al-Qasr village in the Baalbeck-Hermel governorate, in northeast Lebanon.
According to the local LBCI station, a dispute broke out between Lebanese and Syrian smugglers after gunmen from the Syrian side kidnapped a truck driver who was transporting smuggled goods. The two sides exchanged fire, prompting the army to interfere.
It remains unclear what goods were being smuggled.
