CIA ran secret program to undermine Afghanistan’s opium industry, report reveals

The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) secretly carried out a covert operation between 2004 and 2015 aimed at weakening Afghanistan’s opium industry by dispersing genetically modified poppy seeds, according to an investigative report by The Washington Post.

The decade-long program allegedly sought to reduce the narcotic potency of Afghan poppies, thereby disrupting the billion-dollar opium trade.

Aerial Distribution and Presidential Authorization

Citing 14 sources familiar with the classified operation, The Washington Post reported that the CIA airdropped specially engineered poppy seeds across Afghanistan’s key opium-producing provinces, including Helmand and Nangarhar. The seeds were designed to yield plants with minimal levels of alkaloids — the chemical compounds used in heroin production.

The operation was reportedly authorized by President George W. Bush and later continued under the Obama administration, managed through the CIA’s Crime and Narcotics Center. British C-130 aircraft were used in the early phases to disperse the modified seeds over vast tracts of farmland.

Former U.S. officials described the initiative as “tremendously expensive,” acknowledging that despite years of effort, the program produced mixed results and failed to significantly reduce Afghanistan’s role as the world’s top opium supplier.

Limited Success and Lingering Impact

While the CIA has not publicly commented on the report, sources said the program’s overall impact was limited, as Afghan farmers continued cultivating traditional, high-yield poppy varieties. By the time the operation was phased out in 2015, Afghanistan’s opium production remained central to both the national economy and insurgent funding networks.

The revelation underscores the breadth of U.S. intelligence operations aimed at disrupting narcotics financing in conflict zones during the two-decade war in Afghanistan.

Post-2022 Context: Opium cultivation declines under IEA ban

Since the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) imposed a nationwide ban on opium cultivation in 2022, production within Afghanistan has fallen sharply. However, analysts warn the narcotics trade is now shifting to neighboring countries, including Pakistan and Iran.

According to Nikkei Asia, Afghanistan’s opium cultivation dropped to about 10,200 hectares in 2025 — a 20% decline from the previous year. The UK-based geospatial firm Alcis offered a slightly higher estimate of 12,800 hectares, but confirmed that cultivation levels remain dramatically below the 200,000 hectares recorded before the IEA ban.

The Afghan Ministry of Interior recently announced that narcotics-related cultivation, trade, and trafficking have been “effectively reduced to zero” inside the country. Authorities said nearly 200,000 kilograms of natural and synthetic drugs were seized and destroyed over the past year.

The CIA’s now-exposed program, combined with Afghanistan’s recent anti-narcotics drive, highlights the long-standing geopolitical and economic complexity surrounding opium production in the region.

While the IEA’s ban has sharply reduced cultivation inside Afghanistan, experts caution that the regional narcotics economy is merely evolving — not disappearing.