Shafaq News – Beirut

On Thursday, the Lebanese army arrested one of the country’s “most dangerous” fugitives, widely flagged by international authorities for his role in drug trafficking.

In a statement, the army said its Intelligence Directorate detained N.Z. (without the full name) in an ambush on the Kneisseh –Baalbek Road, Eastern Lebanon. He is accused of leading armed networks, engaging in narcotics production, weapons trading, armed robbery, and theft.

According to media outlets, the arrested is Nouh Zaiter, who was sentenced in absentia to life imprisonment in 2021 on drug-related charges.

Zaiter, also known as the hashish baron, was sanctioned by the United States and the United Kingdom in 2023 for his alleged involvement in the manufacturing and smuggling of Captagon alongside relatives and close associates of the Al-Assad dynasty in Syria.