Morocco seizes 2.44 tonnes of cannabis

Rabat: The Moroccan security seized on Saturday 2.44 tonnes of cannabis near the northern city of Al Hoceima, official news agency MAP reported.

The banned substance was concealed in 91 packages inside a car, which was stopped at a customs checkpoint 35 km from Al Hoceima, it said.

Meanwhile, on Thursday a unit of the Moroccan Navy Coast Guard aborted a drug trafficking operation in the Mediterranean.

The smugglers managed to flee after throwing 1.5 tonnes of cannabis in the sea, MAP reported.

Despite efforts to crack down on cannabis cultivation during the past decade, Morocco remains one of the world’s largest producers of the narcotic plant, according to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime.

Moroccan security services seized 179,657 kg of cannabis in 2019, according to official statistics.