Lebanon's Interior Minister Elias Murr has announced plans to form an Arab branch of Interpol to assist the international fight against organised crime and money-laundering.
Murr, who heads the Arab council of interior ministers, said the group "would decide on the conditions for creating this office, its location and its role."
He was speaking alongside Interpol's Secretary General Ronald Nobel who was on a visit to Interpol's Lebanese branch. Nobel called it "one of the most important offices in the world'' and commended the Lebanese officers' "extraordinary work."
He said Lebanon Interpol was one of the first branches in the world to have a new computer system which "allows access to the (Interpol) information center 24 hours a day, seven days a week."
Nobel said Lebanon played a key role in fighting drug trafficking and he would support the candidacy of Lebanese officers for Interpol's executive committee based in Lyon, France.
AFP