BEIRUT: The Lebanese Army Command confirmed on Wednesday the death of three of the country’s most notorious and dangerous drug traffickers, who were killed during an armed clash between army units and the wanted individuals in Baalbek.
The security operation, hailed by Lebanese media as “a major milestone in the war on drugs” and “a clear message to fugitives that the era of impunity is nearing its end,” took place less than 24 hours after the Cabinet instructed “the army to develop a plan for seizing illegal weapons by year’s end and submit it to the government by the end of August.
The Army Command announced in a statement that “during the pursuit of a vehicle carrying wanted members of the Zeaiter family in the Sharawneh neighborhood of Baalbek, a clash broke out between the suspects and army units, resulting in their deaths.”
The individuals have been identified as Ali Monzer Zeaiter, Abbas Ali Saadoun Zeaiter, and Fayyad Salem Zeaiter and were wanted for a series of serious crimes, including the killing of soldiers, kidnapping, armed assaults on army posts and patrols, and armed robbery.
The Directorate of Orientation reported that “the wanted individuals had been involved for years in large-scale drug trafficking across multiple Lebanese regions, contributing to the rise of crime and drawing thousands, especially youth, into lives of crime.”
