ALBAWABA - Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban spokesman, said that Taliban condemns a report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) as Afghanistan is now free from drugs.
Mujahed stressed that Taliban completely banned drugs in the war-torn country. "Our government has taken very important steps to eliminate drugs in Afghanistan, including a ban on poppy cultivation, trade, and drug smuggling across the country," Mujahid said in a statement sent to Anadolu News Agency.
The UNODC's latest report revealed that since the Taliban takeover of power in Afghanistan in 2021, heroin trafficking has continued at a reduced rate, while methamphetamine trafficking has surged.
"Methamphetamine trafficking is expanding at a staggering pace. Across Afghanistan and neighboring countries, there was nearly a twelvefold surge in seizures, from 2.5 tons in 2017 to 29.7 tons in 2021," the UNODC report read.
"Within Afghanistan, annual seizures rapidly rose from less than 100 kilograms (220 pounds) in 2019 to nearly 2,700 kg (5,962 pounds) in 2021, suggesting increased production," the report added.
Afghanistan is a major supplier of opium poppies. The plant is used in the production of heroin. However, the Taliban banned the substance last year. They have begun to crack down on Afghan poppy farmers. It has ruined crops all around the country.
