Defense Council Decides to Up Border Monitoring to Curb Smuggling

The Higher Defense Council on Wednesday decided to "intensify monitoring and prosecution and toughen penalties against smugglers and their partners" in a bid to control illicit trafficking across the porous and poorely demarcated border with Syria.

"All efforts must be exerted in coordination among the various agencies to control the border in order to prevent the smuggling of goods and material and shut down all the illegal crossings," the Council said in a statement issued after a meeting in Baabda under President Michel Aoun.

It also decided to "devise a comprehensive plan for setting up military, security and customs monitoring posts."

During the meeting, Aoun called on authorities "not to be lenient in this issue," emphasizing the need to "take the strictest measures against violators."