With the Taliban claiming to be fighting drugs, experts point to continued trafficking, the spread of synthetic drug production, and the role of the trade in financing the group’s senior officials. Iranian officials had earlier expressed concern over a fourfold increase in seizures of synthetic drugs on the Khorasan Razavi border with Afghanistan in the first six months of 2026.
Farhad Basharyar, a counternarcotics expert, says drug trafficking is one of the Taliban’s sources of funding. According to him, the Taliban have set up drug processing laboratories inside Afghanistan. He claims that these laboratories previously operated in Pakistan’s tribal areas.
The expert believes that the dependence of part of the Taliban’s revenue on the drug trade, together with broad demand in global markets, is among the factors behind the continuation of trafficking. He adds that alongside natural drugs, the spread of synthetic drugs, including narcotic tablets, methamphetamine (known as “shisha”) and crystal meth, has also become a serious challenge in Afghanistan.
Mr. Basharyar adds: “Over the past three decades, drugs have been one of the sources of terrorism financing. A large part of the fighting in Helmand Province and other southern provinces during the republic era was linked to the drug trade, and in many insecure districts, these drugs were cultivated and produced. Major traffickers, including Haji Lal Jan, Haji Bahauddin and Haji Bakhtawar, whose names were on the blacklists of the United Nations and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), transferred money to the Quetta Shura and the Karachi Shura in Pakistan. At that time, hundreds of millions of dollars were sent to the Quetta Shura by Afghanistan’s drug mafia networks.”
Rashed Behroz, another expert on combating administrative corruption and counternarcotics affairs, says that the cultivation, production and trafficking of drugs in Afghanistan have increased since the Taliban took control. According to him, the spread of administrative corruption under the Taliban regime has paved the way for the growth of this phenomenon. He adds that the Taliban’s previous ties with major traffickers and drug producers continue, and that as long as the group rules Afghanistan, this phenomenon will not only fail to decline but is also likely to expand further.
Mr. Behroz says that observer countries, the United Nations (UN) and other bodies working in the field of counternarcotics are aware of the Taliban’s role in the increase in the cultivation, production and trafficking of these drugs.
This expert says: “During the 20 years of the republic, the cultivation, production and trafficking of drugs were among the main challenges facing the Afghanistan government. The main reason for this situation was that drugs were one of the Taliban’s sources of funding. The cultivation and production of these drugs were more widespread in Taliban-controlled areas, and the country’s security forces suffered heavy casualties in clashes related to this phenomenon and in the fight against the Taliban. The financial resources that the Taliban obtained this way amounted to billions of dollars.”
Meanwhile, Mohammad Bashir Dudyal, an economic affairs analyst, says that the cultivation, processing and trade of drugs in Afghanistan have a long history. According to him, factors such as insecurity, climate change, poverty, the lack of suitable markets for agricultural products and the shortage of cold storage facilities are among the main reasons for the spread of drug cultivation and production in the country.
Mr. Dudyal says: “Over the past 47 years, not all of the country’s provinces and districts have enjoyed lasting security, and in many areas, the rule of law was not effectively established. On the other hand, drought and climate change have limited the cultivation of many useful crops, while drugs require less water. Likewise, when farmers cannot earn a livelihood for their families from growing crops, they turn to cultivating these drug crops because of their higher prices. Furthermore, the lack of suitable markets for selling agricultural products, the closure of trade routes with Pakistan and the shortage of storage facilities cause farmers’ produce to spoil and inflict economic losses on them.”
However, Nemat (pseudonym), a resident of Badakhshan Province, says that despite the Taliban’s repeated announcements about reducing the cultivation, production and trafficking of drugs in Afghanistan to zero, the realities on the ground do not match the group’s claims. According to him, the expansion of poppy and hashish cultivation last year, particularly in Badakhshan and Takhar provinces, shows that drug cultivation in the country continues.
This Badakhshan resident adds: “Despite severe restrictions on the sale of opium, stockpiles of this substance have grown over the past two years, because part of the opium produced in previous years went unsold and new production has been added to these stocks. In addition to opium, other types of natural and synthetic drugs are also produced, trafficked, and traded in Afghanistan. Unfortunately, contrary to the Taliban’s official claims, the use of synthetic drugs among young people and even teenagers has increased under the group’s rule. One of the main factors behind the spread of this situation is the crisis gripping Afghanistan, because in times of crisis, the ground becomes more favorable for the growth of black and informal markets, drug production and trafficking, and rising addiction.
Iranian officials said on November 12 that seizures of “synthetic” drugs on the Khorasan Razavi border with Afghanistan in the first six months of 2026 had increased fourfold compared with the previous year. The commander of the Khorasan Razavi border guard added that during this period, one and a half tons of various drugs, including opium, heroin and synthetic drugs, were seized along these borders.
Earlier, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said in a report that drug use in Afghanistan is still largely shaped by traditional drugs, while the use of synthetic drugs and medical drugs is on the rise. According to the report, men attributed the highest rates of use to hashish at 46 percent and opium at 19 percent. The use of K tablets at 11 percent and methamphetamine (“shisha”) at 7 percent was also reported.
Field findings in a Hasht-e Subh Daily report also show that after the Taliban announced a ban on the cultivation and trade of drugs, the price of one kilogram of opium in Helmand rose from 3,000 afghanis to 50,000 afghanis. The markets of Sharafat, Sarwan Qala, Sangin, Musa Qala, Bahramcha and Chanjir are among the major centers for buying and selling opium in the province.
You can read the Persian version of this report here:
قاچاق مواد مخدر؛ منبع مالی مقامهای طالبان و گسترش مواد صنعتی
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