On Wednesday, an unusual smuggling attempt involving thousands of cigarettes concealed inside hundreds of pineapples was thwarted at the Lachish Crossing.
The smuggling attempt was detected by the security inspection personnel of the Land Crossings Authority at the Israeli Ministry of Defense, who transferred the findings to representatives of COGAT's Judea Liaison and Coordination Administration.
The shipment had been purchased by an Israeli company authorized to operate under the private sector humanitarian aid mechanism and was intended to reach the Kerem Shalom Crossing as part of the humanitarian aid entering the Gaza Strip. The truck and its entire cargo were confiscated and transferred to the Customs Directorate and the other competent authorities for further investigation.
In response to the incident, the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), Major General Yoram Halevy, ordered the immediate suspension until further notice of the company's authorization to deliver humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.
"COGAT, in cooperation with the Land Crossings Authority at the Ministry of Defense, the Customs Directorate and all relevant security authorities, will continue to act decisively and with zero tolerance against any attempt to smuggle goods or exploit the humanitarian aid mechanism," an official statement stressed.