Israel’s intelligence unit said on Friday it was investigating whether Hezbollah was linked to the smuggling of arms and drugs that was foiled on the border with Lebanon.

 

 

Israeli spokesman Avichay Adraee wrote on his Twitter account that Israeli troops spotted a suspect early Friday, carrying a handbag near the Lebanese town of al-Mtolleh, and then another suspect came from the Israeli side to pick it up.

 

 

The man was driving a tractor, and hid the weapons inside.

 

 

“The Israeli army carefully tracked down the smuggling attempt and thwarted it,” Adraee added.

 

 

The army is checking whether Hezbollah had a role in the smuggling attempt.

 

 

Earlier, the army said Israeli troops, in cooperation with Israeli police, spotted suspects smuggling a bag from Lebanon into Israel.

 

 

“The suspect on the Israeli side of the border was apprehended and 12 firearms were confiscated,” while the suspect was transferred to security forces for further questioning, it explained.

 

 

The operation came after the Israeli military announced on June 2 the arrest of several individuals coming from Lebanon carrying bags containing 15 pistols, dozens of boxes of ammunition and 36 kilograms of drugs.

 

 

At the time, the Israeli army said that in total, the contraband was worth roughly NIS 2 million ($616,000).