Car loaded with explosives seized in Dahr El-Bider... Interior Minister: We will not rest until security is fortified

Interior and Municipalities Minister Ahmad Al-Hajar, while chairing a meeting of the Central Internal Security Council, praised “the efforts of the officers and personnel of the Dahr al-Bider checkpoint, who, thanks to their vigilance, professionalism, and dedication, managed to seize a car containing explosive materials and arrest two individuals on board.” He considered that “this operation underscores the pivotal role played by the Internal Security Forces in detecting security threats and confronting them before they evolve into actual dangers to security and stability.”

Al-Hajar commended “the vigilance of the Internal Security Forces’ officers and personnel, alongside their operational readiness, which exemplify the importance of proactive security in thwarting risks.” He reassured that “despite the challenges, we will not rest as security agencies, the army, and the judiciary until we ensure a high level of security.”

He added that “the significance of what was uncovered is no less important than completing the investigations to uncover all the circumstances of the case,” noting that “the Lebanese Army Intelligence and the Information Department of the Internal Security Forces will expand the investigation, at the request of the Distinguished Public Prosecutor’s Office, in order to reveal all details and hold accountable anyone proven to be involved, in accordance with the law.”

Calling on “security agencies to tighten the measures taken at checkpoints and roadblocks, raise the level of scrutiny, and enhance patrols and security presence and deployment, thereby strengthening the capacity to fortify internal security,” he said that “personnel at the Dahr al-Bider checkpoint suspected a car last Monday due to its overloaded cargo, prompting a search that revealed a quantity of explosive materials inside. The driver and the person accompanying him were arrested and referred, along with the seized items, to the Military Police, based on a directive from the competent judiciary.”

The attendees discussed the country’s security situation and ways to strengthen preventive measures and procedures to combat various types of crime, particularly drug smuggling, trafficking, and consumption, as well as theft crimes, thereby contributing to curbing illegal activities.