Kuwaiti coast guards kill two smugglers in drug bust

Kuwaiti coast guards killed two suspected smugglers in its territorial waters for reportedly trying to ship drugs into the country.

The coast guard exchanged fire with the suspects during the operation which took place on Thursday, the interior ministry said in a statement.

The confrontation left two of the smugglers dead and a third injured after they tried to bring 79kg of cannabis and one kg of "chemical drugs" into the country.

It is unclear where the smugglers came from.

Late last year, Lebanon and Kuwait agreed to bolster security and intelligence cooperation and exchange of information to combat smuggling after a major drug bust.

The agreement was made in a phone call between the two countries' interior ministers after Lebanese customs seized nine million Captagon pills that were found hidden in a shipment of oranges to Kuwait.

Earlier this month, a Kuwaiti court sentenced three Iranians to death for smuggling drugs by sea.