Cannabis Chronicles

As a part of our personal archiving project, we add yet another article to the compilation detailing the “Buds of Bekaa”, this time a 2001 piece from Newsweek Magazine . . .
Lebanon: Hash Makes A Comeback
The Bekaa Valley Regains Its Outlaw Reputation
NEWSWEEK
Sep 17, 2001 Issue
Abu Ali is back in business. Wading through a fertile [...]

Returning to our on-going personal project, archiving stories about hashish in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, here’s a piece from the British press that was printed late last year . . .

The dimly lit basement reeks of hashish. Piled high along a wall are dozens of large white sacks filled with the leaves and seeds of the [...]

With this posting we descend into what might be considered “policy wonk” material. The following analysis of the Bekaa Valley’s role in the geopolitical struggle between Israel and Hezbollah originated from Strategic Forecasting Inc.1

The Bekaa’s Crucial Role in the Israeli-Hezbollah Fight
August 2, 2006 | 0350 GMT
Summary
Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley will play a critical role [...]

As a part of our current research project, we are attempting to archive as broad a perspective as possible concerning the the production of Lebanese hashish in the 21st century. We see this as a way to seek our own understanding of the complex issues surrounding this topic.
As a part of working to tell [...]

We’ve archived a good number of perspectives on the resurgence of the “Buds of Bekaa”, and many of those articles have included quotes and sympathetic coverage of Bekaa’s farmers, but none of the articles have been written completely from the Lebanese perspective.
Thanks to the Internet, it’s possible to provide a unique Lebanese perspective from Ya [...]

Here’s yet another addition to our ongoing look at Lebanese Hashish, from Issue #191, 6/22/01 - Drug War Chronicle

Return of the Repressed: Hash Production Revives in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, Farmers Vow to Fight Eradication
6/22/01
For hundreds of years, the Bekaa Valley on the Lebanese-Syrian border was known for its luxuriant cannabis crops, most destined to [...]

Lebanon was also predominantly important in the context of history as it was recorded in the cannon of the Bible books, or as westerners call it The Holy Bible.

From the beginning books, Lebanon is central in location. It was a landmark that is supported by the many familiar references to it. One knew where [...]

The following piece, an interesting addition to our ongoing series of journal entries about Lebanese Hashish, was originally found at the Asia Pacific Media Services Limited website . . .
Looking for Leb Red

When I arrived at the University of London in the late 1980s, the thing to take to parties was Leb Red– not a [...]

The entire “Bud’s In Bekaa” series was inspired, at least in part, by a 2007 article in the Christian Science Monitor which is also the first posting in this series of journal entries. Going back 20+ years in time, here’s a CS Monitor story from the mid 1980’s when hashish production in Lebanon’s Bekaa [...]

“The Bible described Lebanon as “the land of milk and honey” because of its rich farmland, and in Roman times, Bekaa Valley was known as ‘the breadbasket of the Empire’.”1
According to Eye on Lebanon, “Farming remains a way of life . . . agricultural products still generate 12% of the country’s GDP. Bekaa valley is [...]

As we mentioned previously, there have been a number of prior programs attempting to offer alternatives to hashish production for farmers in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley. The following New York Times article details an attempt earlier this decade to bring dairy farming to that region.

Cattlemen In Lebanon Miss Lucre Of Hashish
By NEIL MACFARQUHAR
April [...]

Continuing our look back at the most recent historical spike in the production of Lebanese hashish, we’ll continue with another addition to the archive of articles from 2001. . .

Lebanon: Hashish Grows Again In The Fields Of Lebanon

Why Farmers In Hermel Have More Faith In ‘Gold’ Than Government

Sun, 01 Jul 2001
by Robert Fisk

originally [...]

Since we’ve been giving a bit of attention to “Cannabis/Hashish in Lebanon” here at the Cannabis Chronicle of late, it seems only natural to put last year’s hash harvest into a bit better perspective. With that in mind, it should be obvious to those who know us that we’d like to share a bit [...]

Our most recent posting here at the 3LB’s Cannabis Chronicles was the story of an Israeli call for a boycott of Lebanese hashish due to the presumed link between drug profits and funding for Hezbollah. For reference purposes, here’s the original entry reproduced from the Orthodox Anarchist blog . . .

Hashish Boycott & Hemp [...]