Saudi authorities seize 28.9kg of cocaine in Jeddah
Hamoud Al-Harbi, of the Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority, said the cocaine, concealed inside a shipment of frozen meat, was discovered during security checks at customs.
Al-Harbi emphasized the authority's commitment to tightening controls over the Kingdom's imports and exports and to confronting smuggling attempts. This is in line with its key strategy — to enhance security and the protection of society by limiting attempts to smuggle harmful substances and prohibited items.
Al-Harbi urged the public to help the authority's work by reporting suspicious activities via the dedicated hotline on 1910 or by emailing 1910@satca.gov.sa. All reports are dealt with in confidence.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
2 hours ago
- Arab News
Gaza civil defense says Israeli attacks kill 18
GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories: Gaza's civil defense agency said Israeli strikes and gunfire killed at least 18 Palestinians on Sunday, including seven people shot dead while waiting to collect food aid. Civil defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP that seven people were killed in an Israeli drone strike that hit a hospital courtyard in Gaza City, in the territory's north. Witnesses said the victims were members of a Hamas unit, which a source from the Palestinian militant group described as responsible for distributing aid and 'fighting thieves.' There was no comment from the Israeli military, which is preparing a broader offensive in Gaza City and has sent ground forces to the city's Zeitun neighborhood in recent days. After more than 22 months of war, UN-backed experts have warned of widespread famine unfolding in Gaza, where Israel has drastically curtailed the amount of humanitarian aid it allows in and convoys have been repeatedly looted. Witnesses on Sunday reported Israeli air strikes across the Gaza Strip overnight and into the morning. Bassal said four people were killed in a strike that hit a tent sheltering displaced Palestinians in the southern area of Khan Yunis. The civil defense spokesman said Israel continues its intense bombardment of Gaza City's Zeitun, where troops have carried out a ground operation for the past week. He said there were many casualties, but civil defense crews were facing 'enormous difficulties reaching those trapped under the rubble' due to the ongoing violence and lack of equipment. Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties accessing swaths of the Palestinian territory mean AFP is unable to independently verify the tolls and details provided by the civil defense agency or the Israeli military. Israel on Saturday hinted at an approaching call to push civilians from Gaza City ahead of the new offensive demanded by the security cabinet. A defense ministry statement said that 'as part of the preparations to move the population from combat zones to the southern Gaza Strip for their protection, the supply of tents and shelter equipment to Gaza will resume.' Hamas later slammed the move, saying the announcement was part of a 'brutal assault to occupy Gaza City.' On the ground on Sunday, Bassal said six people were killed by Israeli gunfire near an aid distribution point in the south. Another person was killed near an aid site in central Gaza, Bassal added, with a nearby hospital saying the body had been taken there. The war was triggered by Hamas's October 2023 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures. Israel's offensive has killed more than 61,897 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to figures from the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza which the United Nations considers reliable.
Arab News
a day ago
- Arab News
Mother of missing journalist Austin Tice reveals newly declassified intelligence
WASHINGTON: The mother of missing American journalist and former US Marine Austin Tice has shared new details from recently declassified intelligence documents, saying the files contain information that could help locate her son. Speaking at a press conference marking 13 years since her son vanished outside Damascus, Debra Tice said the documents suggested that US agencies had near-daily information on his condition and captivity during the years following his disappearance in the Syrian Arab Republic. The files were shared earlier this year by US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard following long-standing requests from the family to access raw intelligence material related to the case. 'When he had something (wrong) about his teeth, they took him to a dentist. When he had some stomach issues, they took him to the doctor,' Debra Tice was quoted as saying in The Washington Post. She did not specify dates or locations. Tice, a freelance journalist covering the Syrian conflict for The Washington Post and other US outlets, was abducted on the outskirts of Damascus in August 2012. A video released shortly after his disappearance showed him blindfolded and held by armed men. US officials have long suspected the Syrian government was behind his disappearance, but Damascus has consistently denied involvement. Debra Tice said she was repeatedly told by officials in past administrations that no new information existed. But she said the files revealed otherwise, reinforcing her belief that her son is alive and can still be found. She alleged that the Syrian government had attempted to return her son shortly after his disappearance by reaching out to then-US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. 'The Syrian government reached out to Hillary Clinton and wanted her to come and get Austin in ... August of 2012, and she declined,' she said, reported The Washington Post. However, the publication quoted former US officials with knowledge of the case denying such an offer was made, saying that the Syrian regime never acknowledged holding Tice and 'vigorously denied any knowledge of Austin right to the end.' US officials have blamed the lack of progress on obstruction by the Bashar Assad regime and the highly secretive nature of Syria's detention network. Since the collapse of the Assad regime in December 2024, the CIA has reportedly adopted a 'low confidence' assessment that Tice is likely dead — an evaluation the family strongly rejects. Debra Tice said she remains confident her son is alive and that the release of thousands of detainees from collapsed Syrian prisons has yet to yield any definitive information about his case. The Tice family's access to intelligence files was granted following lobbying efforts. Debra Tice said the newly declassified information had strengthened her resolve to keep pressure on the US authorities to resolve the case. 'We know Austin is alive. We need to find him,' she said. Tice's case remains one of the longest unresolved abductions of an American journalist in the Middle East. Rights groups and press freedom advocates have repeatedly urged the US government to prioritize the search for him and ensure accountability for his captors.
Arab News
a day ago
- Arab News
Authorities arrests five suspects involved in smuggling Pakistanis to Iran, Turkey
KARACHI: Pakistan's Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has arrested five suspects involved in smuggling citizens to Iran and Turkiye, the agency said on Saturday, amid an ongoing crackdown against human smugglers in the country. The arrests were made by the FIA in Taftan and Loralai border towns of Pakistan's southwestern Balochistan province, which shares a long porous border with Iran and Afghanistan. The development comes amid a crackdown on agents involved in sending impoverished Pakistanis abroad through dangerous routes, luring them with a chance at a better life in Europe. The arrested suspects, identified as Rasool Bacha, Aminullah, Hashmat Ali, Talib Hussain and Ehsanullah, worked for an agent, Faheem Gujjar, based in Iran, according to the FIA. 'The suspects Rasool Bacha, Aminullah and Hashmat Ali are involved in illegally transporting citizens to Iran and Turkiye,' the FIA said in a statement. 'Talib Hussain and Ehsanullah were found involved in helping citizens illegally cross the border.' The suspects had been on the 'most-wanted list' of Pakistani embassies in Iran and Turkiye, according to the FIA. They used to smuggle citizens from Pakistan to Iran, from where they would arrange for their travel further to Turkiye. 'Four innocent civilians were also rescued from the suspects' house during the raid,' the FIA said. The Pakistani government has ramped up efforts in recent months to combat human smugglers facilitating dangerous journeys for illegal immigrants to Europe, resulting in several arrests. Last month, the FIA arrested five suspects in Punjab's Gujranwala and Gujrat districts who were said to be involved in human smuggling and defrauding citizens. Prior to that, the FIA said it had arrested an agent involved in the Morocco boat tragedy, in which dozens of Pakistanis attempting to travel illegally to Europe had drowned near the African country's coast. The boat had set off from Mauritania in January with 86 migrants on board, among them 66 Pakistanis, for the Canary Islands administered by Spain, international rights group Walking Borders had said. Moroccan authorities said on January 16 that 36 people were rescued from the vessel, while Pakistan confirmed survivors of the tragedy included 22 of its nationals. A record 10,457 migrants, or 30 people a day, died trying to reach Spain in 2024. Most of them died while attempting to cross the Atlantic route from West African countries such as Mauritania and Senegal to the Canary Islands, according to Walking Borders. In 2023, hundreds of migrants, including 262 Pakistanis, drowned when an overcrowded vessel sank in international waters off the southwestern Greek town of Pylos, marking one of the deadliest boat disasters ever recorded in the Mediterranean Sea.
