Lebanese customs seize Israeli package

Security sources told ArabsToday that the Lebanese customs authorities in Beirut's international airport seized an Israeli package which arrived there on the morning of Saturday 23rd July.   After referring back to the Public Prosecution Department of the Israeli Ministry of Justice, the customs officials learnt that the Israelis were sending a package from the Israeli Embassy in Cyprus, to the Israeli Foreign Ministry in Tel Aviv.  They refused to hand it over to an official from the Embassy of Cyprus who planned to transfer it. The security document obtained by ArabsToday indicated that it is the first package of its kind to arrive at Beirut International Airport through Cyprus Airways.  The Israeli diplomatic package, weighing 2kg, was sent by the Israeli embassy in Nicosia, Cyprus, to the Israeli Foreign Ministry in Tel Aviv, and was for the Lebanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  This prompted customs authorities to alert the station manager at the airport, and the public prosecution, which called for the immediate confiscation of the package, and demanded that it be handed over to the judicial authority. The security document also said that one of the officials from the Cypriot embassy in Beirut visited the airport with a view to pick up the package, but the customs officer told him what the situation was, and refused to surrender the package.  Sources refused to disclose the contents of the package, and said that the ongoing investigation had not yet decided whether or not to publish its contents.