Kabul, February 24 – Afghan police in their crackdown on illegal drugs arrested two drug smugglers and recovered 41 kg of illicit drugs from their possession in Takhar province, northern Afghanistan, according to a statement from the provincial police office on Tuesday.
According to the statement, the suspects were attempting to smuggle 29 kg of opium poppy and 12 kg of hashish out of the province on Monday.
The Afghan government has vowed to fight against the production and trafficking of illegal drugs until the country is free from the threat of drugs, Xinhua News Agency reported.
On February 3, provincial police spokesman Mullah Kalimullah Nangyal said that police in Farah province, western Afghanistan, had arrested two drug smugglers and seized 75 kilograms of narcotics.
The official added that, acting on intelligence, security forces raided a location in Farah Rod district on Monday, apprehending the two suspects and confiscating 75 kg of raw opium.
An assault rifle was also recovered from the operation site, the spokesman said.
This marks the second seizure of illegal drugs recently reported in western Afghanistan.
On February 1, the provincial police office said that police had seized 170 kg of illegal drugs from a vehicle in Herat province, western Afghanistan, and taken two alleged drug smugglers into custody.
Based on intelligence, police intercepted a car on Saturday and, after a search, recovered 170 kg of opium and hashish from hidden compartments in the vehicle, the statement said. It added that two individuals in the car were arrested on charges of attempting to traffic the contraband to an unknown destination.
The arrestees will be handed over to judicial authorities after preliminary interrogation is completed, the statement further noted.
Police will not allow anyone to produce or traffic illegal drugs anywhere in the province, the statement emphasised.
In a similar operation, police in eastern Khost province discovered 18 kg of hashish and arrested an alleged drug trafficker.
