Kabul: Afghan counter-narcotics police have arrested 60 individuals suspected of involvement in the illicit drug trade and seized 29 kg of narcotics in operations across 12 provinces, the Ministry of Interior Affairs said in a statement on Sunday.
The suspects were detained during a series of separate operations carried out in and around the provinces of Nimroz, Balkh, Nangarhar, Kapisa, Laghman, Kunduz, Samangan, Parwan, Badakhshan, Khost, Panjshir and Farah, the ministry said.
The seizures included various types of illicit narcotics, the statement said, without providing further details on the drugs confiscated or the identities of those arrested, Xinhua News Agency reported.
Afghanistan’s authorities have stepped up a nationwide campaign against the narcotics trade, targeting drug traffickers, cultivators and production networks as part of broader efforts to curb the country’s illicit drug economy.
Earlier in the day, Afghan police have dismantled a clandestine drug-processing laboratory and seized 48 kg of crystal methamphetamine in southern Uruzgan province, the Ministry of Interior Affairs announced.
Acting on a tip-off, officers raided a site on the outskirts of the province, destroying the facility and recovering the illicit consignment, according to a ministry statement.
In separate operations, counter-narcotics units confiscated an additional 23,000 kg of precursor materials used in drug manufacturing in southern Helmand and eastern Ghazni provinces.
The ministry did not disclose whether any arrests were made in connection with the raids, but reiterated that police will not tolerate the production, trade, or trafficking of illegal narcotics anywhere in the country.
On August 27, Afghan police burned more than 2.5 tonnes of illicit narcotics in northern Takhar province, provincial police office spokesman Naqibullah Masroor said.
The narcotics included 2,000 kg of opium, 335 kg of hashish, and over 200 kg of methamphetamine, the police official said, warning of taking stern action against anyone who produces or traffics narcotics across the province.
(IANS)
