No end in sight for million dollar opium war in Afghanistan

Afghanistan is the world’s premier producer of opium. It's poppy fields now supply more than 90 percent of the world’s heroin, and authorities are unable to stop those behind the multibillion dollar trafficking industry.The US government has spent billions of dollars on a war to eliminate drugs from Afghanistan.

Updated on: May 12, 2017 3:17 PM IST

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An Afghan farmer harvests opium sap from a poppy field in the Surkh Rod district of Nangarhar province. The US government has spent billions of dollars on a war to eliminate drugs from Afghanistan, but the country still remains the world's top opium producer. (NOORULLAH SHIRZADA / AFP)

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Over the last 15 years, the US government has spent billions of dollars on a war to eliminate drugs from Afghanistan, but the country still remains the world's top opium producer. (Javed TANVEER / AFP)

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Afghan farmers harvest opium sap from their poppy fields. (NOORULLAH SHIRZADA / AFP)

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Opium production is a major source of income for the Taliban insurgents. (NOORULLAH SHIRZADA/ AFP)

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Afghan security personnel destroy an illegal poppy crop in Laghman province. (Waseem NAIKZAD / AFP)

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Last year, Afghanistan saw a 10 percent jump in opium cultivation compared to the previous year because of bumper harvests, collapsing eradication efforts and declining international aid to combat drugs, according to the United Nations. (NOOR MOHAMMAD / AFP)

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According to the U.S. military, the Taliban, considered the strongest terrorist group in Afghanistan, generates as much as 60 percent of its funding from the illicit opium trade. (Waseem NAIKZAD / AFP)

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Afghan farmers harvest opium sap from their poppy fields. Opium is used in heroine production, and massive opium crops mean cheaper drugs. (NOORULLAH SHIRZADA / AFP)