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SIGAR finds Taliban income mainly generated through illicit dealings
The Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) said in a report that the primary sources of income for the Taliban are narcotics, illicit mining, and other illegal activities.
SIGAR, citing a UN Security Council report, said the Taliban has continued to adapt and expand its ability to maintain and generate financial revenues to support their operations from June 2019.
“The primary sources of income for the Taliban remain narcotics, illicit mineral and other resource extraction, taxation, extortion, the sale of commercial and government services and property, and donations from abroad,” the report said.
The UN report states that Afghan officials estimate Taliban income from narcotics between June 2018 and June 2019 amounted to approximately $400 million.
The report also notes that the Taliban now controls all aspects of narcotics production, which likely indicates that their total revenues are even higher.
“In our February 2018 meeting, a senior official from the Resolute Support Counter Threat Finance Cell estimated that between 40 to 60 percent of the Taliban’s revenue comes from narcotics trafficking,” the report added.
According to SIGAR, Afghanistan is the world’s largest producer of opium and the source of more than 90 percent of the world’s heroin.
SIGAR’s finding shows that the US has allocated more than $8 billion to fight opium production and trafficking in Afghanistan since the collapse of the Taliban regime in 2021.
“We previously reported that despite this enormous investment, “no counterdrug program undertaken by the United States, its coalition partners, or the Afghan government resulted in a lasting reduction in poppy cultivation or opium production,” SIGAR said.
The Taliban, however, has rejected the report, stating, “a number of provincial governors, ministers, commanders, and border forces are involved in drug smuggling.”
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Continued aid to Afghanistan vital for regional security: Kazakh president
Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has emphasized the continuation of humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, stating that the ongoing provision of such aid plays an important role in ensuring regional security.
Speaking at the international conference “Peace and Trust” in Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan, Tokayev described addressing complex humanitarian challenges and the reconstruction of Afghanistan as a necessity.
“To ensure regional security, we consider it essential to continue providing assistance to Afghanistan, including by strengthening international efforts to address complex humanitarian issues and the reconstruction of this country. Kazakhstan remains committed to supporting the people of Afghanistan through humanitarian aid, educational projects, trade development, and food security initiatives,” he said.
Meanwhile, experts believe that sustainable improvement of the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan requires broad cooperation from the international community and support for the country’s economic development.
“Investment can be defined as one of the fundamental drivers of the economic cycle, and whenever Afghan traders do not take their money out of the country and instead invest domestically, it naturally leads to greater growth and dynamism in Afghanistan’s economy,” said Abdul Zahoor Modabber, an economic analyst.
As the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan continues, reports by international relief organizations indicate that millions of citizens of the country are in urgent need of food, health, and livelihood assistance.
The reduction in funding for aid organizations, the impacts of climate change, and the return of migrants have increased concerns about a further deterioration of the humanitarian situation in the country.
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Islamic Emirate declines to attend Tehran meeting on Afghanistan
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Sirajuddin Haqqani: A government that intimidates its people is not a true government
Khalifa Sirajuddin Haqqani, Minister of Interior of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, said during a visit to Khost province on Friday that any government which rules through fear cannot be considered a true government.
“A government is one that is loved by its people, one that serves them with respect and compassion, and from whose behavior people learn ethics and sincerity,” he said.
Haqqani also stressed that Afghans who opposed the Islamic Emirate in the past should be tolerated and treated in a way that helps eliminate hostility and animosity, paving the way for national cohesion.
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