SIDON, Lebanon: Police on Wednesday arrested several men for drug-related offences in Sidon following two consecutive raids in the coastal city.
A group of four men were caught using drugs after the police raided one of the city’s streets at dawn.
Another group was arrested at noon when the police raided a pharmacy in which young men were attempting to buy drugs that required a prescription.
The pharmacist told The Daily Star that the young men asked him for a tranquilizer he could not sell without a doctor’s prescription.
Sidon residents have been reporting an increase in drug use all over the city that many say has reached the highest levels ever recorded.
Last month, the municipality and civil associations in Sidon said they were preparing a treatment center for drug addicts. The hub still needs a couple of weeks to be ready, bodies supervising the project said.