Jordan troops seize weapons and drugs from smugglers in border region

The desert area is near Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Israel

Jordanian soldiers patrol the eastern border with Syria, where smuggling is rife. AP

Jordan's army has said it foiled an attempt to smuggle weapons and drugs in the south of the country, in a rare announcement of an anti-narcotics operation in the region.

Forces of the Southern Command thwarted “an infiltration attempt by a group of people and the smuggling of a large quantity of weapons and ammunition and drugs”, state media quoted a military official as saying.

The encounter occurred on Wednesday in the area along the kingdom's south-west frontier, a desert region that borders Saudi Arabia and Israel and faces Egypt across the Red Sea.

“Rapid response patrols were dispatched and rules of engagement were applied, which led to their retreat,” the official said.

Troops seized 127 hand guns, 248 ammunition magazines and 176 pills of the illegal stimulant Captagon.

Jordan's anti-smuggling efforts have focused in recent years on the kingdom's northern border with Syria.

The region has become a key route for smugglers attempting to send Captagon into the kingdom and further to the Arabian Peninsula.

Production of the illegal drug has surged in Syria, amid the continuing civil war.

Arab security officials say that Captagon worth several billions of dollars passes through the Syria-Jordan border every year.

Jordan has historically battled the smuggling of hashish from Lebanon's Bekaa Valley, parts of which are strongholds of the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah.

But since 2018, Captagon has become the main illegal substance smuggle in the Levant, the security officials say.

In a separate announcement, Jordanian police said on Wednesday that personnel from the anti-narcotics unit arrested 15 armed domestic drug traffickers over a two-day period in Amman and several provinces.

Cocaine, crystal meth, cannabis, and other drugs were seized in the operations, the police said, adding that those arrested were referred to the State Security Court, which deals with perceived threats to the kingdom's security.

Earlier this month Jordanian authorities said they destroyed 12.8 million Captagon pills and other drugs sized in 43 drug cases.

State media published a photo of security personnel placing bags of the drugs in a furnace, in the latest public display of state efforts to combat the flow of narcotics.