The Directorate General of Internal Security Forces - Public Relations Division issued the following statement: As part of the Internal Security Forces' Information Branch's monitoring of food security amid the economic crisis the country is experiencing, orders were given to intensify intelligence efforts to reduce the sale of subsidized flour in the black market, uncovering networks involved in these operations and arresting them.
As a result of the investigations and inquiries carried out by this division, they identified members of a network smuggling and transporting subsidized flour from the North Governorate to the Bekaa Valley and selling it on the black market. Among those arrested were:
- A. H. (born in 1998, Lebanese)
- A. A. (born in 1992, Lebanese)
On September 6, 2022, after a period of careful surveillance, the division's patrols succeeded in arresting the first individual in the Al-Qubbah area and the second in the Al-Tabbaneh area while they were driving two "Hino" pickup trucks loaded with a quantity of 23 tons of subsidized flour.
During interrogation, they admitted to being part of a network smuggling and transporting subsidized flour from the North Governorate to the Bekaa and selling it on the black market. They revealed that they had previously carried out 16 operations transporting large quantities of subsidized flour to the Baalbek area, amounting to approximately 300 tons sold on the black market.
The necessary actions were taken against them, and they were referred to the competent authority based on judicial instructions. Search warrants were issued for the remaining culprits, and efforts continue to arrest them.
