The General Directorate of Internal Security Forces - Public Relations Division issued the following statement: "As part of the daily monitoring carried out by the Internal Security Forces to combat crimes of all kinds across Lebanon, information was obtained by the Information Branch regarding a person storing military weapons and ammunition in his library located in Dhour Shweir, for the purpose of trade. Following this, specialized units in the branch began field and investigative procedures to determine the location and identity of the suspect, and to arrest him.
As a result of intensive investigations and inquiries, they were able to identify the location of the library in Dhour Shweir and the identity of its owner, referred to as R. Sh. (born in 1988, Lebanese). On November 23, 2023, after careful surveillance, a unit from the branch raided the library and arrested R. Sh. while he was selling ammunition to one of his customers, who was also arrested, identified as A. A. (born in 1982, Lebanese). A military pistol was seized from him.
A quantity of military weapons and ammunition was found in the library, as follows:
- 6 Kalashnikov rifles
- 35 Kalashnikov rifle magazines
- 14 military pistols
- 63 pistol magazines
- Various rifle and pistol accessories
- 2035 bullets of different calibers.
During the investigation, the first suspect admitted to trading weapons since 2020 in a back room of his library, where he stored and hid them, adding that he buys weapons from acquaintances and then sells them for profit, and that A. A. is one of his customers who had previously purchased several weapons and ammunition from him. The latter also confessed to the charges against him.
Legal measures were taken against both individuals, and they, along with the seized items, were sent to the relevant authority, based on the instructions of the competent judiciary."
