VZCZCXRO6180
RR RUEHAG RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHKUK RUEHROV
DE RUEHLB #1423/01 2751446
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 011446Z OCT 08
FM AMEMBASSY BEIRUT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 3194
INFO RUEHEE/ARAB LEAGUE COLLECTIVE
RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE
RHEHNSC/WHITE HOUSE WASHDC
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO 3204
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 2991
RHMFISS/USCENTCOM SPECIAL HANDLING MACDILL AFB FL
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHDC
RHMFISS/HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE
RHMCSUU/FBI WASHINGTON DC
RUEAWJA/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHDC

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIRUT 001423 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR NEA/FO, NEA/ELA, NEA/PI 
ALSO FOR IO ACTING A/S HOOK AND PDAS WARLICK 
P FOR DRUSSELL AND RRANGASWAMY 
USUN FOR KHALILZAD/WOLFF/SCHEDLBAUER 
NSC FOR ABRAMS/YERGER/MCDERMOTT/RAMCHAND 
AID/ME FOR LAUDATO/BEVER/SCOTT 
INL FOR DJOHNSON AND ABLOOMQUIST 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/29/2018 
TAGS: PREL SNAR PTER PINR EAID SOCI UNSC NAS SY LE
SUBJECT: LEBANON: DRUG ERADICATION HALTED IN 2006 HAS NOT 
RESUMED 
 
REF: BEIRUT 1389 
 
Classified By: Charge d'Affaires a.i. William Grant for reasons 1.4 (b) 
 and (d). 
 
SUMMARY 
-------- 
 
¶1.  (C) The Internal Security Forces' (ISF) Counternarcotics 
Chief said the ISF had to halt its drug eradication efforts 
in the Bekaa valley agricultural region in 2006 because of 
the war with Israel and the program has not resumed because 
police and military personnel were needed to deal with 
violence elsewhere in both 2007 and 2008.  The ISF cannot 
carry out eradication without security assistance from the 
Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF).  A resident of a a village in 
the Bekaa Valley known for hashish production said that, in 
previous programs, authorities only eradicated hashish crops 
that could be seen from the highway and chose not to bother 
fields that remained out of sight from the main roadway.  He 
said that that Hizballah members in his town grow hashish, 
but only for their own personnel income.  He added that 
Hizballah turns a blind eye to the drug trade in the Bekaa 
and south Lebanon because it does not want to alienate its 
supporters who engage in drug production and smuggling.  End 
Summary. 
 
LAF AND ISF WORK TO 
ERADICATE DRUG CULTIVATION 
--------------------------- 
 
¶2.  (C) In a September 23 meeting with Embassy INL program 
director, Michel Chakkour, head of the Internal Security 
Force's (ISF) Counternarcotics Unit, discussed a number of 
issues related to the GOL's now-halted counternarcotics 
operations in Lebanon.  He said that the ISF and the Lebanese 
Armed Forces (LAF) were able to go into a number of areas in 
the Bekaa agricultural region to perform hashish and opium 
eradication operations before the 2006 War with Israel. 
However, the LAF and ISF were unable to work in 2006 because 
of the war and operations could not take place in 2007 due to 
the use of LAF resources in the battle with Fatah al-Islam 
terrorists near the northern city of Tripoli, at the Nahr 
al-Barid Palestinian Refugee camp. 
 
¶3.  (C) Chakkour noted that the ISF could only eradicate 
illegal hashish and opium fields with the help of the LAF due 
to a lack of sufficient ISF manpower and resources.  The LAF 
provided security to ISF teams performing the actual 
eradication operation, and the ISF would not go into these 
areas without LAF protection, Chakkour said. 
 
¶4.  (C) Chakkour added that the ISF wanted to start up 
operations again in 2008, but could not due to the on-going 
violence in the northern city of Tripoli and a diversion of 
LAF and ISF resources to stop the fighting there.  In 
addition, the LAF and ISF are not ready to confront heavily 
armed hashish and opium traffickers.  The ISF was warned by 
residents of drug cultivating regions that it would face 
serious opposition from villagers and farmers if it tried to 
restart counternarcotic operations in the area.  He claimed, 
however, that the LAF is ready to stop drug smuggling across 
Lebanon's borders if it occurs. 
 
LAF AND ISF NOT SUCCESSFUL IN 
THEIR ERADICATION PROGRAM 
----------------------------- 
 
¶5.  (C) In a September 24 meeting with PolOff, Mohammad 
Chreif, a resident of the village of Yammouneh, (a village in 
the Bekaa famous for growing hashish), and son-in-law of its 
mayor, said that in the past, the LAF and ISF would only go 
to a few villages where hashish and opium could be seen 
growing from the highways.  The LAF and ISF would destroy 
 
BEIRUT 00001423  002 OF 002 
 
 
only the visible crops, leaving most fields out of sight from 
the highway untouched.  Chreif noted that the LAF and ISF 
tried to enter Yammouneh in 2005 to do some eradication and 
the villagers attacked the LAF and ISF personnel, injuring 
several officers. 
 
UN PROGRAM 
A FAILURE 
------------- 
 
¶6.  (C) Chreif added that the UN's Food and Agriculture 
Organization (FAO) had a program in Lebanon from 1995 - 1999 
as part of a GOL eradication program, with the use of 
international donor assistance, for the Bekaa region 
(reftel).  The FAO spent approximately $22 million on the 
program, which was a total disaster, according to Chreif. 
Most of the money was wasted or stolen, and Chreif said that 
several UN employees were able to build personal villas using 
the FAO funds.  In addition, the FAO chose unprofitable 
alternative crops for the farmers to grow, such as potatoes, 
apples, and oak trees, which motivated many farmers to opt 
out of participating in the program. 
 
NOW IS THE TIME TO START 
CROP SUBSTITUTION PROGRAM 
------------------------- 
 
¶7.  (C) Chreif argued that now is the time to try a crop 
substitution program.  Hashish has lost its value.  Farmers 
are losing money and looking to grow alternative crops, 
according to Chreif.  He said two to three years ago, farmers 
would earn $1,000 per kilo for hashish, but now only earn 
$100.  Chreif attributed the lost earnings to basic 
economics, noting that when the price was high many farmers 
turned to growing hashish.  Now that supply has increased, 
demand has gone down causing the price to drop.  He plans to 
meet with Agriculture Minister Elie Skaff to discuss a plan 
he and his father-in-law, the mayor, are currently working on 
to substitute industrial hemp production for hashish 
cultivation. 
 
¶8.  (C) Chreif added that the real profiteers from the drug 
trade in Lebanon are the few exporters who have a monopoly 
over the business and have been able to set high mark-up 
prices for themselves.  He said the exporters smuggle the 
drugs in tires on ships to Egypt and Europe.  Currently, only 
small farmers are being arrested, while the huge exporters 
continue to operate with few legal ramifications. 
 
HIZBALLAH TURNS BLIND EYE TO 
DRUG TRADE IN BEKAA AND SOUTH 
----------------------------- 
 
¶9.  (C) Chreif acknowledged that some Hizballah members in 
Yammouneh were growing hashish.  Chreif said Hizballah has 
turned a blind eye to the drug trade in the Bekaa because it 
wants to avoid losing popular support by confronting the 
powerful tribes and farmers who live in the area and 
cultivate the drug.  Chreif also said the Hizballah is 
allowing hashish to be transported from the Bekaa to the 
south, and on to Israel.  Hizballah allows this trade to 
occur because its supporters gain money from the business. 
While the drug trade is an important source of income for 
Hizballah, Chreif said they actually earn more money from 
selling fuel (from Iran) on the black market. 
GRANT