ROME, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Italian finance police seized a record 788 kg of cocaine in a large-scale anti-drug operation on Tuesday, marking one of the largest drug hauls ever intercepted by the country's authorities.

The operation, conducted by the Guardia di Finanza in collaboration with Italy's National Customs Agency, took place at the southern port of Gioia Tauro in the Calabria region, police confirmed in a statement.

The cocaine was concealed in three shipping containers arriving from South America, destined for various ports in Italy and Spain. Investigators found the drugs hidden inside hundreds of pallet bags and in the engine compartment of a container carrying frozen fish.

According to officials, the seized cocaine had an estimated street value of approximately 126 million euros (131.6 million U.S. dollars).

Gioia Tauro, covering a total area of 440 hectares, is Italy's largest transshipment port and ranks as the ninth-largest container port in Europe. It is considered a major gateway for international drug trafficking, particularly cocaine.

In a separate operation on Saturday, finance police confiscated an additional 110 kg of cocaine at the same port, with an estimated market value of 20 million euros (20.8 million U.S. dollars).

Cocaine smuggled into Europe is primarily transported by sea from South America, entering either through major northern European ports in Belgium and the Netherlands or, via the Strait of Gibraltar, through southern ports such as Gioia Tauro. From there, the drugs are distributed overland to central and northern Europe.

According to Italy's Anti-Drug Agency, 30.56 percent of all cocaine seized nationwide in 2023, approximately 5.3 tonnes, was discovered in containers at Gioia Tauro.