Saudi authorities thwart 147kg methamphetamine smuggling operation

1 / 2
Saudi Arabia implements severe laws for those who are involved in smuggling narcotics. (SPA)
2 / 2
Short Url
Updated 16 April 2025
Follow

Saudi authorities thwart 147kg methamphetamine smuggling operation

Four men have been arrested after an attempt to smuggle 147kg of methamphetamine into Saudi Arabia, state news agency SPA reported on Wednesday.

The General Directorate of Narcotics Control (GDNC), in collaboration with the Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority found the drugs concealed in a marble shipment arriving at Jeddah Islamic Port.

Following the operation, authorities arrested four individuals linked to the case — three Pakistani residents and one Saudi national.

Saudi Arabia implements severe laws for those who are involved in smuggling narcotics, the severest being the death penalty, according to the Saudi Ministry of Interior.

Security authorities urge the public to report any information related to drug smuggling or selling by calling 911 in Makkah, Riyadh, and Eastern regions, and 999 in other regions of the Kingdom.

They may also contact GDNC at 995 or through email: [email protected]

All reports will be treated with strict confidentiality.


Saudi defense minister receives Mukalla port director, thanks him for heroic role

Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman poses with the director of the Port of Mukalla Salem Basamir on Tuesday.
Updated 13 January 2026
Follow

Saudi defense minister receives Mukalla port director, thanks him for heroic role

  • Prince Khalid thanked Basamir for his heroic and humanitarian role in ensuring safety and protecting lives and property at the port

RIYADH: Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman received the director of the Port of Mukalla Salem Basamir on Tuesday.
In a post on social media platform X, Prince Khalid thanked Basamir for his heroic and humanitarian role in ensuring safety and protecting lives and property at the port.
The Coalition to Support Legitimacy in Yemen carried out a limited airstrike in December targeting foreign military support at the Port of Mukalla in the Hadramaut governorate, where calm has been restored after a period of tension.
In a statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency following the strikes, coalition spokesman Major General Turki Al-Maliki said two ships coming from the port of Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates entered the Port of Mukalla without obtaining official permits from the Joint Forces Command of the Coalition.
“The crews of the two ships disabled their tracking systems and unloaded a large quantity of weapons and combat vehicles to support the Southern Transitional Council forces in the eastern governorates of Yemen (Hadramaut and Al-Mahra) with the aim of fueling the conflict. This is a clear violation of the truce and the pursuit of a peaceful solution, as well as a violation of UN Security Council Resolution No. 2216,” said the spokesman.