The General Administration of Customs reported that inspectors at Terminal 4 stopped the passenger upon arrival from Addis Ababa and conducted a thorough examination of his two suitcases. Officers found the hashish carefully hidden inside the inner linings and wrapped in tin foil in what appeared to be an effort to avoid detection by scanners. The total weight came to 8.547 kilograms, split between 3.732 kilograms in one bag and 4.815 kilograms in the other, according to the administration’s breakdown of the seizure. The operation fell under the direct supervision of the Deputy Director General of Customs for Ports, Search and Customs Investigation Affairs, who oversaw field procedures and ensured all legal steps were followed immediately.
Customs officials prepared a full seizure report at the scene before referring both the suspect and the confiscated substances to the General Directorate for Drug and Alcohol Control for prosecution. This case forms part of ongoing efforts at all Kuwaiti entry points to intercept prohibited items, building on patterns seen in prior operations at air cargo and passenger terminals. A November 2025 joint operation by the Ministry of Interior and customs authorities, for instance, resulted in the discovery of more than 100 kilograms of hashish and marijuana hidden inside a private vehicle at Shuwaikh Port.
Ministry of Interior figures show that 9,754 drug-related cases were recorded between 2023 and 2025, involving 11,136 accused individuals and the confiscation of 9.59 tons of various narcotics. Such statistics underscore the scale of interdiction work at airports and ports, where African and Asian routes have frequently featured in smuggling attempts. The Addis Ababa flight in this instance aligned with routes that customs data has flagged for elevated scrutiny in recent years due to transit patterns from cannabis-producing regions.
The General Administration of Customs has increasingly deployed advanced detection equipment and targeted passenger profiling at Terminal 4 to counter concealment methods ranging from foil wrapping to integration with legitimate cargo. In a separate incident reported just one day earlier, the same administration intercepted marijuana pieces hidden inside dates in a postal parcel originating from Thailand. These repeated successes reflect coordinated tactics between customs inspectors and specialized drug control units across multiple facilities.
Regional analyses from the UNODC highlight that cannabis resin and herb continue to circulate through Middle East trafficking networks, with authorities in Gulf states reporting consistent seizures linked to both air and sea routes. Kuwait’s position as a transit and destination market has prompted sustained investment in border controls, according to ministry assessments that track annual trends. The latest airport case adds to a growing tally of interdictions that authorities say help disrupt supply chains feeding local distribution networks.
