Israeli couple caught with marijuana on Egypt-Israel border

Some 26.6 kg (nearly 59 pounds) of marijuana, hidden in the gas tank of a car making its a way across the border from Egypt to Israel, were caught Friday by border control at the Taba border crossing.

The owners of the car in which the marijuana was found were arrested. The two are 27 and 29 and are residents of Israel's south.

According to suspicion, the two were on vacation in Sinai with their children and were on their way back to Israel Friday evening. At the crossing, security officers discovered some 40 packages of substance they believed to be marijuana.

The suspects were questioned at the crossing, and were then handed over to the Eilat police.

The Magen unit, southern police wing investigating drug smuggling from Egypt and Jordan, has confiscated the drug and will be investigating the couple.

Eilat District Police Chief, Ron Gertner, said that "in light of its geographic isolation, Eilat is forced to cooperate with unlikely partners in order to enforce the law and ensure that its residents and guests are secure. Eilat will not be a channel for drug transport."