Army and police forces arrested two Bedouin Israelis on suspicion of smuggling a load of hashish worth a quarter-million shekels (roughly $80,000), the IDF and police say.
The two suspects belong to the Azazme Bedouin tribe. Forces in the IDF’s Yoav Brigade spotted the men carrying duffel bags south of the Dead Sea near the border with Jordan, raising the suspicion of drug smuggling.
They were apprehended by IDF forces and were found to have been carrying 53 kilograms (117 pounds) of hashish. The men were transferred to the Arad police station for interrogation.
Police yesterday arrested three Negev residents suspected of smuggling about 145 kilograms of hashish into the Gaza Strip. The suspects, residents of the Bedouin diaspora and Rahat, were arrested in the Gaza area by military forces. Attorney Nashef Darwish, representing two of the suspects, Ismail and Odai Abu Tarash, claimed they were not aware of the drugs that were inside the flour sacks. The driver, Rahat resident Jalal al-Qrinawi, said he works along the Philadelphi Route. The Be’er Sheva Magistrate’s Court extended their detention by 8 days.
