Use of Hashish, 'up the desert'?

Discussion in 'North Africa & the Med' started by At Home Dad (Returning), Nov 15, 2008.

  1. At Home Dad (Returning)

    At Home Dad (Returning) Well-Known Member

    Hallo all

    When my mum was a hippy in the mid Sixties
    my veteran Grandad (Queen's) asked if she could
    get hold of hasish - as the last time he had had it
    was in the North Africa desert "under the stars" and
    he'd enjoyed it.

    Was drug abuse widely problematic or known about on this
    particular Front, due to the local custom of 'hookah pipe'
    and hashish?

    And did the Germans and Italians have similar problems?

    Or was this issue treated in another way?



    kind regards
     
  2. Kuno

    Kuno Very Senior Member

    I have never read about the use of hashish in the accounts of the Axis troops (they were more than happy, if the could gather a bottle of alcoholic beverage captured from the British ;-)). Further, I do not believe that the local population in Libya was using hashish at all - amongst the sect of the Senussia, even smoking of tobacco was forbidden (an there was a serious punishement!).
     
  3. At Home Dad (Returning)

    At Home Dad (Returning) Well-Known Member

    Hallo Kuno

    I've only found one reference here

    "Left North Africa early Feb. 1945 on Liberty Ship U.S.S. Asa Gray, along with contingent of Senegalese Troops, who played their flutes and smoked hashish."
    Warren Lodholtz

    I guess what would help is knowing what they called it back then, it must have had a slang word. 'Hookah Pipe' doesn't imply hashish use automatically does it? I'm not very knowledgable on these cultural history things!

    Thanks for the reply!

    Kind regards
     
  4. Tom Canning

    Tom Canning WW2 Veteran WW2 Veteran

    At Home Dad -
    Senegalese troops were not from Lybia as were the Senussia - who were forbidden to smoke anything !

    I have never heard of any hashish being sought out in North Africa by British troops - the only drugs we dealt with were of tobacco makes - or the odd beer - drugs never really came to the fore until the Viet Nam carry on
    Cheers
     
  5. Drew5233

    Drew5233 #FuturePilot 1940 Obsessive

    If the troops were from the more Eastern side of Africa they may have been using a similiar drug to Hasish Called 'Chat'. Its a cultural drug used widely in the Somalia regions of Africa. Its a green leaf type vegatable matter that is chewed and had the same type of effects as smoking drugs like Cannabis or Hasish.

    Its not illegal in this country :eek:
     
  6. At Home Dad (Returning)

    At Home Dad (Returning) Well-Known Member

    I'm aware of Khat, as they call it around here, there were
    rows of cafes chocker full of blokes chewing it one time!

    I'm wondering whether he became aware of hashish in Egypt
    and not Libya. Apparently it was quite the hub of the smuggling/
    disrtibution network, so ....

    thanks for the input, all
    interesting replies

    kind regards
     

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