Despite talk of a Taliban ban, in Helmand’s poppy fields farmers and traders say they are not the only ones who depend on the drug to survive
The Taliban’s announcement that it plans to ban the production of opium in Afghanistan does not faze seasoned dealer Ahmed Khan*.
“They could not fund their war if there were no opium,” says Khan, who operates out of Baramcha, close to the border with Pakistan.
He has traded in the drug for a quarter of a century and is confident that the group cannot really afford for trade to stop.
“There would be a backlash from the poppy farmers, drug lords and the public if the Taliban bans the opium production. The Taliban has benefited the most from opium production over 20 years.”
