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Ammon News - The Director General of Customs, Major General Jalal Qudah said Wednesday that 2,826 smuggling cases were reported during the first half of 2023, compared to 3,303 cases during the same period of 2022.

According to Qudah, the smugglers were fined JOD44 million during the first half of this year, compared to JOD31 million for the same period in 2022.

In an interview with the the Jordan News Agency (Petra), Qudah said that the number of violations recorded by the department in the first half of this year amounted to 36,466 violations, with fines amounting to JOD29 million relating to mostly concentrated e-cigarettes and mobile phones.

He added Jordan "is in a war" with manufacturers of narcotic substances, "Captagon and Crystal," where the largest seizures are concentrated in the Al Karama and Jaber customs centres.

He noted that the recently approved customs control system provides an opportunity for the department to keep pace with combating smuggling operations, which are constantly evolving, adding that ut requires developing and qualifying the department's staff to "dry up smuggling sources in cooperation with the security services."

Qudges added that the department collected JOD 886.6 million as of the end of the first half of 2023, compared to JOD 876 million during the first half of last year 2022, an increase of some JOD 10 million, or 1.2 per cent.