National Gendarmerie's anti- smuggling drive on Algeria's western border

Several field reporters of the newspaper Echorouk have accompanied recently squads of the National Gendarmerie in a large-scale anti-smuggling operation conducted with success on Algeria's western border with Morocco.

Our field reporters were present in the border town of Maghnia and were told on the spot in detail about the shadowy means and the devious routes used by the smugglers to introduce illegally all sorts of staple commodities, goods cigarettes and even petrol across the border into neighbouring Morocco .

According to sources from Algerian border guards and the National Gendarmerie, petrol smuggling has increased over the past few years  with large quantities of petrol  smuggled by organized trafficking groups from Algeria into Morocco to be sold there at a lower price.

The same sources indicated in this connection that youngsters settled in the border area are given 500 dinars a day plus other benefits by these organized groups of traffickers to keep a close watch over the movements of security agents and then open, a safe passage for cross border smuggling operations.

An official told our reporters that these runaway smuggling activities have cost  huge losses to the Algerian economy and unflagging efforts should be made by the authorities concerned to check this nefarious phenomenon.

In this respect, our reporters on assignment there saw for themselves the efficient being done by the elements of the National Gendarmerie and border guard as part of efforts to stamp out these smuggling activities and protect Algerias’s economy.