Taliban begins campaign to eradicate lucrative poppy cultivation in Afghanistan

Afghanistan's Taliban rulers have begun a campaign to eradicate poppy cultivation after the group issued an edict in early April 2022, banning a key source for many narcotics, including morphine, codeine and heroin. The move comes as Afghanistan’s economy heads toward collapse, with the nation cut off from international funding since the Taliban takeover in August 2021. Most of the population has been left struggling to afford food because of the economic woes and severe drought gripping the country. The Taliban warned that violators of the poppy cultivation ban face arrest and trial according to sharia laws.