Some 15 officers in Qatar have been hailed after recently foiling attempts to smuggle a collective 66kg of marijuana, 8kg of hashish and 5,600 drugs pills into the country.

Most of the drugs were recovered at Hamad International Airport (HIA), where the General Authority of Customs (GAC) searched travelers’ luggage for the contraband.

Some of the narcotics were wrapped in carbon paper. This is because smugglers thought this would help it remain undetected by X-ray machines, the GAC said in a statement.

The hashish meanwhile was found in secret pockets of two different bags.

Other drugs were recovered from Airport Cargo, where they were being shipped in wooden artwork frames.

Trafficking hub

As HIA grows into a world transit hub, Qatar is becoming an increasingly attractive route for drug smugglers.

The recent busts did not even include the most creative attempts to bring drugs into the country.

For example, last May, a passenger was caught after attempting to smuggle 332g of marijuana by hiding it in a box of pastry.

And month before that, a passenger was found to be hiding 11kg of the drug in a bag of dried chili peppers.

Thoughts?