FLAP | Nearly 9.2 tons of cannabis resin hidden in bales buried in the sand were seized in Morocco in the region of Guelmim (southwest), the Moroccan National Security (DGSN) announced on Saturday in a statement.
A judicial inquiry has been opened to determine the possible ramifications of the network of traffickers which had already been targeted by a seizure in January, according to the same source.
Morocco is one of the main cannabis producing countries in the world, cultivated mainly in the mountainous region of Rif (north).
Annual production has been estimated at more than 700 tonnes, worth $ 23 billion (19 billion euros), according to a study published in 2020 by the independent network Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime.
Moroccan authorities say they are making “intense and continuous efforts” to fight drug trafficking, with more than 217 tonnes of cannabis resin seized last year and 97,564 arrests, according to official figures.