ISF disputes Al-Manar report of illegal importation of ammunition
The Internal Security Forces (ISF) Tuesday denied news reports which aired on Manar TV Monday that the ISF”s Intelligence Branch tried to smuggle large quantities of ammunition and hand grenades into the country via Beirut”s Rafik Hariri International Airport. The report said “hundreds of packages” arrived Monday afternoon with “huge amounts of ammunition and military supplies” with the ISF listed on the manifest as the recipient.
Customs officials at the airport refused to hand the shipment over, according to the report.
Manar TV said that importing of ammunition requires Cabinet approval and written permission from the Lebanese Army, both conditions were not met on the manifest, the news report said. An ISF statement Tuesday refuted the report on Manar TV and accusations made by Hizbullah MP Mohammad Raad on a talk show on Al-Manar TV that the Intelligence Branch had smuggled in “military arms” for the purpose of arming certain “civilian groups supported by one political camp.”
“The ISF General Directorate emphasizes that what MP Raad said is categorically untrue and the general directorate called the channel concerned to clarify the matter on air but despite the program director”s assurances, we were not allowed to do so,” it said.
The statement said the shipment received was to re-supply and reequip the ISF with military and civilian vehicles, weapons and ammunition, needed to face the myriad security challenges facing security forces in Lebanon, from criminal offenses to terror threats.
“What happened the other day was a shipment of equipment arrived which the ISF had ordered from a specialized firm, in accordance with official and legal contracts. It was shipped openly and was inspected according to regulations,” the statement said, adding that the shipment included riot police gear.
The statement said the shipment came in the name of the general directorate and its contents were clearly mentioned on the manifest and after inspection was released by airport customs to the ISF, contrary to what was mentioned in the Al-Manar report. The statement said the shipment mentioned is for use by the ISF and any of its various branches.
According to the manifest, a copy of which was obtained by The Daily Star, the shipment contained 51 crates of “ammunition” weighing 939 kilograms, not hundreds as Al-Manar reported. The shipper was SAE ALSETEX, a private French company that designs and manufactures an extensive range of ammunition for the French Army and other armed forces.
A letter from the head of the ISF, Major General Ashraf Rifi, to the director general of Lebanese Customs, dated November 19, asks for “special permission” to take delivery of the 51 crates, a permission which was granted.