BEIRUT, Feb. 6 (Xinhua) -- The Lebanese army on Wednesday closed numerous illegal crossings along with border with Syria in North Bekaa in a bid to stop smuggling between the two countries, TV Channel LBCI reported.

According to LBCI, smuggling between the two countries costs Lebanon about 600 million U.S. dollars every year.

This is not the first time that the Lebanese army closes illegal crossings between the two countries.

Last year, the army closed more than 50 illegal crossings along the borders.

In the past years, the illegal border crossings between Syria and Lebanon have witnessed the smuggling of products ranging from fuel and arms to antiquities.

Since the outbreak of the Syrian civil war, more and more reports have emerged about the illegal trade in cultural relics looted from the country's historical sites, which have been devastated by waves of fighting.

According to the Lebanese Directorate General of Antiquities, security forces seized more than 300 cultural objects between 2012 and 2014.

Maroun Chammas, head of the Association of Petroleum Importing Companies, previously said about 1.5 million liters of petrol and fuel oil is smuggled from Syria to Lebanon on a daily basis, representing 20 percent of petrol consumption in the country. Enditem

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