Taliban Reports 25,764 Operations to Eradicate Poppy Fields Since 2022 Ban

A Taliban counter-narcotics official announced that 25,764 operations have been conducted to eradicate drug cultivation fields since the ban on poppy growing took effect in 2022.

Haseebullah Ahmadi stated that the operations resulted in the seizure of 2,159 tons of drugs and the arrest of 13,326 individuals on trafficking charges. An additional 7,844 operations targeted the collection of drug addicts.

The ban on cultivation and production of narcotics was ordered by the Taliban leader in Hamal 1401. The 2026 World Drug Report issued by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime recorded a 95 percent drop in Afghan opium production following the prohibition. Afghanistan had previously accounted for 80 percent of global illegal opium output, and the decline is altering the international drug market.

A UNODC representative called for expanded international cooperation to support alternative livelihoods. A Taliban spokesman had earlier reported that 27,000 drug traffickers were arrested over the past four years and that more than 98,000 operations had been carried out in total.