Four Lebanese soldiers were killed on Monday in the Bakaa Valley as the war between the Valley’s drug lords, in relative terms, and the army escalates. The soldiers were killed by a rocket-propelled grenade.

And yesterday, the army stated is killed a fugitive in its hunt for the murderer[s] of the soldiers. The Valley’s farmers claim they cannot make enough money growing corps, and in recent years have turned to growing hashish. What is peculiar about the drug trade is that the Shiite, Islamic fundamentalist party Hezbollah has strong support in the Bakaa Valley and is believed to be profiting from the trade. It has long been reported that some of the revenue Hezbollah derives for arms purchases comes from drugs, all this even though Islam strictly prohibits intoxicants.

It is because of Hezbollah’s involvement, that Israel is getting involved in Lebanon’s drug war. Not directly, but indirectly through a domestic media campaign.

Many of the hashish in the Bakaa Valley is sold, via mediators, to Israelis. Ergo, Israelis are indirectly financing their sworn enemy Hezbollah by smoking marijuana.

The Israeli Anti-Drug Authority is trying to bring home that message:

The ad reads: “Nasrallah aims at destroying Israel entirely.”

“Hizbullah has the obvious purpose of flooding Israel with venom which forms a strategic danger against Israel. We should not give him the chance to destroy Israel and we should counter drugs internally and externally.”

I am not entirely sure what is the point of this ad. Are the authorities trying to tie marijuana with Hezbollah so that people stop smoking all together [killing two birds with one stone] or just stop smoking marijuana from Bakka?