THE customs services of Mozambique, South Africa and Swaziland have begun an intensive joint cross-border operation to combat various types of fraud, Mozambican customs announced on Monday. In the recent first stage of the operation, customs targeted a wide range of illegal activities including smuggling of high-duty value imports such as cigarettes and alcohol into Mozambique, the smuggling of goods into South Africa in vehicles claiming to be returning to South Africa empty of cargo, and “fresh air” exports from South Africa, in which goods never leave that country, but on which VAT exemption is claimed, said a customs press release.