By far – in monetary terms – the most successful part of the Operation Corona border protection tasking in November was the confiscation of narcotics valued at over R8 million by the Joint Operations Division of the SA National Defence Force (SANDF).
This is more than the R6.7 million worth of unspecified narcotics taken from smugglers in October with Mozambicans again the biggest culprits. In October soldiers working the Mpumalanga/Mozambique border relieved smugglers of narcotics worth R5.6 million – last month the narcotics haul along the same stretch of land border was valued at R5.9 million.
Mozambicans attempting to smuggle drugs into South Africa via the KwaZulu-Natal border, along with Swazis coming over the same land border but in a different area, were nabbed with R2.9 million worth of drugs. Joint Operations doesn’t specify the types and amounts of drugs confiscated and handed to police, but the list is usually topped by dagga.
Smaller amount of drugs were taken from Basotho (value R4 000) and Zimbabweans (R1 610) in November.
As has become the norm the number of Mozambicans attempting to enter South Africa via either Mpumalanga or KwaZulu-Natal at 275 is far more than for any other South African land border. Illegal immigrant numbers recorded by soldiers included 30 Zimbabweans; 27 combined from Eswatini and Mozambique; 28 Basotho along its borders with Eastern Cape and Free State as well as two Batswana.
Illegal grazing, made easier by either no or a lack of fencing and low or no water in rivers which demarcate land boundaries, saw soldiers turn their hand to cattle, goat and sheep herding on sections of South Africa’s borders with Eswatini, Lesotho and Mozambique. All told livestock, ranging from cattle to goats and sheep, valued at R3 million was seized.
Soldiers, assisted by police and intelligence, apprehended 28 “criminals” who now find themselves behind bars awaiting trial on unspecified charges. The thin camouflage line manned by regular and reserve force soldiers also saw to it vehicles – number not given – worth R1.8 million were stopped from exiting South Africa bound for chop shops or buyers across the border.
Soldiers in November also recovered more than R700 000 worth of contraband goods from cross-border smugglers.
