Tunnel to trafficking: Lebanese Army cracks down on hidden narcotics lab in Yammoune

Report by Edmond Sassine, English adaptation by Mariella Succar

On a hilltop in Yammoune, the Lebanese Army uncovered a Captagon and crystal meth lab that mirrors the methods of South American drug cartels.

The 300-meter tunnel isn’t beneath a border between Mexico and the U.S. — it’s in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley. 

From the outside, only buildings and rooms are visible. On the inside, the tunnel conceals equipment behind hidden passageways and electronically controlled tile-covered walls, leading to what the Army called the largest Captagon and crystal meth lab it has ever seized.

The tunnel was only part of the operation. What appeared to be tiled walls were in fact disguised doors, opening onto rooms filled with drug-making machinery and chemicals.

After surveillance and infiltration, army intelligence traced the facility producing Captagon for export and crystal meth for local distribution. Other drugs were also found, along with machines originally intended for legal industries but repurposed for narcotics production.

The lab is believed to be the largest discovered to date. 

He had reportedly brought in a foreign expert wanted by Interpol — known for developing unique formulas — and engineers to design the facility and build the tunnel.

The Army destroyed part of the equipment, sealed the tunnel, and confiscated large quantities of drugs. 

The operation marked another blow by military intelligence to a trade that has dragged Lebanon into a dangerous crisis and strained its ties with friendly nations.