PANAMA (REUTERS) - Panamanian police destroyed six tonnes of drugs, most of which was cocaine but also included marijuana.

The seized shipments were set on fire in a garbage dump, Cerro Patacon, on the outskirts of the capital, Panama City.

The destroyed drugs were seized by security forces over the last 40 days. This is the third such destruction this year.

Central America and Mexico are major transit points for South American cocaine into the United States.