Afghanistan drug trade hits $4 billion a year
Colum Lynch; 28/6/08
Afghan opium poppy cultivation grew 17% last year, according to the 2008 World Drug Report, released by the United Nations. It continues a six-year expansion of the country’s drug trade and increasing its share of global opium production to more than 92%. Afghanistan’s emergence as the world’s largest supplier of opium and heroin represents a serious setback to US policy in the region. The opium trade has soared since the 2001 overthrow of the Taliban, which had eradicated almost all of the country’s opium poppies. The proceeds from the illicit trade are helping finance a resurgent Taliban battling US and allied troops.
See: http://www.theage.com.au/world/afghanistan-drug-trade-hits-4-billion-a-year-20080627-2y43.html
Tags: Afghanistan, Drugs, Terrorism, UN, USA