The Ministry of Agriculture announced the launch of an "intensive operation to combat smuggling across the borders carried out by teams from the Lebanese Army, which is commendable, in coordination with the Ministry of Agriculture." The statement said: "For several hours, elements and checkpoints belonging to the 9th Brigade of the army stopped a pickup truck carrying smuggled milk (about one ton) in the Labweh area and destroyed the product for not being transported under the required health specifications in addition to being smuggled. Additionally, three citizens were arrested at the Harbta checkpoint (Northern Bekaa), who were smuggling milk from Syria to Lebanon in a pickup with tanks that did not meet the conditions and posed a threat to national health safety. Furthermore, a pickup carrying about two tons of smuggled milk was also stopped at the Harbta checkpoint in Northern Bekaa, coordinated between the army's leadership (the 9th Brigade) deployed in the area and the Agriculture Department in Baalbek-Hermel."
The statement continued: "The utilized vehicles were confiscated, the milk was destroyed, and the arrested individuals were referred to the judiciary. The Ministry of Agriculture, through the Baalbek-Hermel Agricultural Department, continues to coordinate with the army in combating smuggling from Syria to Lebanon to protect local production and safeguard the work of Lebanese farmers, as well as ensuring food safety and applying the required health conditions and specifications in the sector for all products of vegetables, fruits, milk, and its derivatives." The ministry expressed its gratitude to the leadership of the army and the 9th Brigade and all those concerned for their efforts to preserve the national productive sectors, affirming its commitment to "support both the farmer and the consumer equally."
