humble learner
Well-Known Member
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worl...-in-smoke.html
RAF Harrier jets have been called in to destroy the largest drugs seizure in history after Afghan police discovered hashish worth at least £200 million
Two Harriers launched a strike on a huge cache of 260 tons of the drug, stuffed in sacks of grain and buried in trenches and underground bunkers in Kandahar province in southern Afghanistan.
The combat aircraft dropped 1,000lb bombs on the hiding place, which also included 2.5 tons of raw opium.
After the Harriers had delivered their payload, troops set the drugs ablaze. No previous haul comes close to matching this find, which weighed roughly the same as 30 double-decker buses.
The previous record was set by Colombia's security forces when they uncovered 81 tons of coca.
David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, said: "This was the largest ever single find of narcotics in history. It reflects the efforts of the Afghan Government against the drug trade, and was so large that two aircraft were brought in to destroy the underground bunker in which the hashish was being stored."
"Britain and the rest of the international community will continue to do everything we can to support the Afghan Government fight the narcotics trade, and promote Afghan development."
Taliban insurgents use the drugs trade to fund their campaign against western forces. By seizing a cache worth more than £200 million, the security forces may have deprived the Taliban of a major financial boost.
General David McKiernan, the new Nato commander in Afghanistan, said the police had "made a huge step forward" in "curbing the tide of illegal drug trade in this country."
Gen McKiernan added: "With this single find, they have seriously crippled the Taliban's ability to purchase weapons that threaten the safety and security of the Afghan people and the region."
But opium represents Afghanistan's biggest drug problem. Last year, Afghans grew 9,000 tons of raw opium, enough to be refined into 880 tons of heroin, or 93 per cent of the world's supply.
RAF Harrier jets have been called in to destroy the largest drugs seizure in history after Afghan police discovered hashish worth at least £200 million
Two Harriers launched a strike on a huge cache of 260 tons of the drug, stuffed in sacks of grain and buried in trenches and underground bunkers in Kandahar province in southern Afghanistan.
The combat aircraft dropped 1,000lb bombs on the hiding place, which also included 2.5 tons of raw opium.
After the Harriers had delivered their payload, troops set the drugs ablaze. No previous haul comes close to matching this find, which weighed roughly the same as 30 double-decker buses.
The previous record was set by Colombia's security forces when they uncovered 81 tons of coca.
David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, said: "This was the largest ever single find of narcotics in history. It reflects the efforts of the Afghan Government against the drug trade, and was so large that two aircraft were brought in to destroy the underground bunker in which the hashish was being stored."
"Britain and the rest of the international community will continue to do everything we can to support the Afghan Government fight the narcotics trade, and promote Afghan development."
Taliban insurgents use the drugs trade to fund their campaign against western forces. By seizing a cache worth more than £200 million, the security forces may have deprived the Taliban of a major financial boost.
General David McKiernan, the new Nato commander in Afghanistan, said the police had "made a huge step forward" in "curbing the tide of illegal drug trade in this country."
Gen McKiernan added: "With this single find, they have seriously crippled the Taliban's ability to purchase weapons that threaten the safety and security of the Afghan people and the region."
But opium represents Afghanistan's biggest drug problem. Last year, Afghans grew 9,000 tons of raw opium, enough to be refined into 880 tons of heroin, or 93 per cent of the world's supply.
wow...93%
