Libyan security authorities have seized about 100,000 ecstasy pills reportedly moulded in the shape of the late leader Muammar Gaddafi, after the shipment arrived from Europe, officials said.
Images released by a security agency in Tripoli showed brown pills shaped to resemble Gaddafi’s head and shoulders, including details of his facial features and traditional clothing.
The drugs were intercepted after security officers received information that a trafficking gang planned to transport the shipment by sea. Authorities tracked the consignment to Libya and found the pills hidden inside a cargo van after it arrived at a port.
The Al Rada for Combating Terrorism and Organised Crime agency said the pills, labelled “XTC”, had passed through an unidentified European country before reaching Libya. Several suspects were arrested and referred to prosecutors.
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime said in a report released in January that Libya has become a major transit route for synthetic drugs and other narcotics destined for local markets, North Africa and other parts of the continent.
Drug trafficking groups have exploited Libya’s political instability since 2011, when Gaddafi was overthrown in a NATO backed uprising that was followed by years of conflict and political division.
Libya remains divided between the UN recognised Government of National Unity in the west and forces aligned with military commander Khalifa Haftar, which control much of the east and south.
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