50-Fold Rise in Afghan Drug Production, Trafficking in 20 Years, Says Iranian Official

Eskandar Momeni, the Secretary General of Drugs Control Headquarters in Iran, said that the production and trafficking of drugs in Afghanistan has increased nearly 50 times in two decades.

On Monday, Momeni added that Afghanistan ranks top in drug production and second in industrial drugs production in the world.

Momeni said that despite the promises of the Taliban to counter narcotics, the cultivation and production of drugs have increased in Afghanistan.

He added, "The Islamic Republic of Iran has the highest rank of countering drug smuggling in the world. According to official statistics, Iran discovers 90% of opium, 50% of morphine, and 27% of heroin discoveries in the world.”

Momeni also announced a tenfold increase in the elimination of the economic foundations of drug traffickers in Iran.

These statements were made by the Secretary General of Iran's Drug Control Headquarters during a meeting that was held on Monday in the presence of directors and secretaries of the Drugs Control Coordination Council of Iran.