Kabul, November 11: Afghan authorities have destroyed more than 53 tonnes of illegal drugs in the southern province of Kandahar as part of an ongoing campaign against drug production and trafficking.
Provincial police spokesman Mullah Assadullah Jamshid said the drugs were burned publicly on Wednesday during a ceremony attended by government officials and tribal elders, Xinhua News Agency reported.
The seized narcotics included opium, heroin, methamphetamine, hashish and other illegal substances, along with materials used in drug production. Authorities had confiscated the drugs over the past three months during operations conducted in different districts of Kandahar.
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Jamshid said police had also arrested 227 people suspected of involvement in the drug trade during the same period. He warned that strict action would be taken against anyone involved in producing or trafficking illegal drugs in the province.
Eight Heroin Processing Laboratories Dismantled in Ghor
The latest destruction comes amid a wider crackdown on narcotics-related activities across Afghanistan.
On November 1, Afghan security forces dismantled eight suspected heroin processing laboratories and arrested 17 alleged drug traffickers in the western province of Ghor.
According to provincial police spokesman Mawlawi Abdul Rahman Badri, counter-narcotics units carried out a targeted operation on the outskirts of Chaharsada district following intelligence inputs and a tip-off.
The operation led to the destruction of the facilities and the seizure of significant quantities of precursor chemicals and illegal narcotics used in heroin production.
Badri said the arrested suspects had been taken into custody and transferred to judicial authorities. Their case files were also submitted for further legal proceedings.
The operation was part of an intensified nationwide campaign targeting drug traffickers, cultivators and production networks in an effort to dismantle Afghanistan’s illegal narcotics economy.
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Nearly One Tonne of Drugs Burned in Farah
Earlier, on October 18, police in the western province of Farah publicly destroyed nearly one tonne of illegal drugs.
Provincial police spokesman Kalimullah Nangyal said the seized narcotics weighed around 955 kg and included opium-type drugs, hashish and 36 kg of methamphetamine.
The drugs had been confiscated during recent police operations and were destroyed in a public ceremony.
Police also arrested a suspected drug smuggler, who was to be handed over to the judiciary after the completion of a preliminary investigation.
The latest operations highlight the continuing efforts by Afghan authorities to prevent drug production, disrupt trafficking networks and seize illegal narcotics across the country.
–IANS
