Lebanon arrests fugitive drug kingpin Noah Zaitar after years on the run

Lebanese security forces say they have captured one of the country’s most notorious figures in the narcotics trade, ending years of cat-and-mouse with a man long considered untouchable in the Bekaa Valley.

In a post on X, the Lebanese army announced the arrest of a citizen identified by the initials “NZ”, later confirmed by security sources as Noah Zaitar. The operation unfolded in Baalbek following what the military described as “a series of precise security surveillance and monitoring operations”, culminating in an ambush that finally brought him into custody.

Authorities did not mince words about who they believe they had detained. Zaitar was labelled “one of the most dangerous wanted individuals”, pursued under multiple arrest warrants for running armed gangs across Lebanon, trafficking drugs and weapons, producing narcotics, and carrying out violent robberies. The army added that he had previously opened fire on soldiers and military facilities, targeted civilian homes, and carried out kidnappings for ransom. “The investigation has commenced with the detainee under the supervision of the competent judiciary,” it said.

Zaitar is widely accused of orchestrating a drug empire rooted in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, near the Syrian border, with captagon at the centre of his alleged operations. The synthetic stimulant, often referred to as a regional scourge, has fuelled cross-border trafficking networks and drawn increasing international scrutiny.

His name also appears in US sanctions imposed in 2023, which targeted individuals linked to the captagon trade connected to the regime of former Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad. The US State Department described Zaitar as a “known arms dealer and drug smuggler” and pointed to his alleged ties with Syria’s Fourth Division, once a major player in the captagon business. He was further accused of providing support to Hezbollah.

Despite a military tribunal sentencing him to death in 2024 for killing a Lebanese soldier, Zaitar managed to evade arrest for years, reportedly living openly in his village of Kneisseh under the protection of armed loyalists. His capture now signals a sharp escalation in the Lebanese state’s campaign against high-profile traffickers, even as the broader fight against organised crime remains fraught and dangerous.

The crackdown has not come without cost. Just days before Zaitar’s arrest, two Lebanese soldiers were killed during clashes with narcotics suspects in Baalbek, underscoring the volatility and violence that still define this shadow economy.