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Afghanistan’s opium cultivation drops by 95% this year: UNODC
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said Sunday that opium poppy cultivation in Afghanistan has plunged by an estimated 95 percent following a drug ban imposed by the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan in April last year.
According to a statement issued by UNODC, this sharp decline in the opiate economy in Afghanistan is expected to have “far-reaching consequences”. The agency highlighted the urgent need for enhanced assistance for rural communities, accompanied by alternative development support to build an opium free future for the people.
UNODC said opium cultivation fell across all parts of the country, from 233,000 hectares to just 10,800 hectares in 2023.
The decrease has led to a corresponding 95 percent drop in the supply of opium, from 6,200 tons in 2022 to just 333 tons in 2023.
The sharp reduction has had immediate humanitarian consequences for many vulnerable rural communities who relied on income from cultivating opium.
Farmers’ income from selling the 2023 opium harvest to traders fell by more than 92 percent from an estimated
$1,360 million for the 2022 harvest to $110 million in 2023.
“This presents a real opportunity to build towards long-term results against the illicit opium market and the damage it causes both locally and globally,” said Ghada Waly, Executive
Director of UNODC.
“At the same time, there are important consequences and risks that need to be addressed for an outcome that is ultimately positive and sustainable, especially for the people of Afghanistan.
“Today, Afghanistan’s people need urgent humanitarian assistance to meet their most immediate needs, to absorb the shock of lost income and to save lives,” Waly added.
“And over the coming months, Afghanistan is in dire need of strong investment in sustainable livelihoods, to provide Afghan farmers with opportunities away from opium,” she said.
The strong contraction of the opium economy in 2023, is expected to affect Afghanistan’s economy on a larger scale.
Many farmers turned to cultivating wheat instead, with an overall increase of 160,000 hectares in cereal across a number of provinces.
While wheat cultivation may alleviate food insecurity to some extent, the crop generates much less income than opium, and farmers across four provinces, Farah, Kandahar, Nangarhar and Helmand, lost around $1 billion in potential income in 2023 by switching to wheat, UNODC said.
The agency stated that beyond Afghanistan, less heroin may lead to reduced trafficking and use – or it could spur the emergence of harmful alternatives, such as fentanyl and other synthetic opioids.
Trafficking in other drugs, namely methamphetamine, has surged in the region, UNODC stated.
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Afghanistan says Pakistani military post destroyed near Spin Boldak
Afghanistan’s Ministry of Defense says a Pakistani military post near Spin Boldak was targeted and destroyed after Pakistani forces opened fire toward Afghanistan.
Ministry spokesperson Enayatullah Khwarazmi said in a post on X that Afghan forces suffered no casualties or damage in the clash.
Khwarazmi also rejected claims made by the Pakistani side about the incident, describing them as “propaganda.”
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Mujahid: Pakistan attacking Afghanistan to evade Mecca Pact responsibilities
He warned that the Islamic Emirate would give an “appropriate response” to what he called the Pakistani military regime’s “bullying.”
Islamic Emirate spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid has accused Pakistan of carrying out attacks on Afghanistan to divert attention from its domestic problems and to evade responsibilities under the “Mecca Pact.”
Speaking at a religious seminary in Kandahar, Mujahid said Pakistan was facing political and economic challenges at home and was using attacks on Afghanistan to shift public attention away from protests and its internal problems.
“Pakistan, by violating the territory of its neighboring Islamic country, wants to divert attention from its failures,” he said.
Mujahid also criticized Pakistan’s political situation, claiming that political space had been restricted and that freedoms guaranteed under the country’s laws were not being allowed.
He said Pakistan’s economic problems had also increased significantly and accused the country of seeking to distract the public from those problems by engaging in conflict with Afghanistan.
Mujahid further accused Pakistan’s military leadership of putting the Pakistani people at risk through what he described as its “false position.”
He warned that the Islamic Emirate would give an “appropriate response” to what he called the Pakistani military regime’s “bullying.”
His remarks followed Pakistani airstrikes on Kandahar, Paktia and Khost provinces on Thursday, which Afghan authorities said killed four civilians.
The strikes came three days after attacks on Kunar and Paktika provinces, in which Afghan authorities said three civilians were killed.
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Kabul rejects U.S. claim that meth seized in Pakistan was of Afghan origin
Balkhi said the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) has imposed an absolute ban on the production, trafficking and use of all types of narcotics in Afghanistan.
Afghanistan’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Abdul Qahar Balkhi has rejected a U.S. claim that 463 kilograms of synthetic drugs seized in Pakistan were of Afghan origin, calling the attribution “unfounded and politically motivated.”
Balkhi said the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad should investigate the origin of the seized drugs in Pakistan rather than attributing them to Afghanistan.
“The attribution by the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad of the synthetic drugs bound for Sri Lanka and intercepted in Pakistan through joint U.S.-Pakistani efforts as ‘Afghan-origin’ is an unfounded and politically motivated allegation,” Balkhi said.
He said the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) has imposed an absolute ban on the production, trafficking and use of all types of narcotics in Afghanistan.
Balkhi also claimed that following the ban in Afghanistan, the cultivation, production and trafficking of narcotics have increased “on the other side of the Durand Line.”
He further argued that Afghanistan does not have the capacity to produce synthetic drugs and said crossing points along the Durand Line have been completely closed to all movement for nearly a year.
His remarks came after the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad said U.S. and Pakistani anti-narcotics authorities had seized 463 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine worth an estimated $21 million and bound for Sri Lanka.
The embassy said the operation led to multiple arrests and highlighted ongoing U.S. cooperation and training with Pakistani authorities to disrupt international drug-trafficking networks.
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