KABUL, Jan. 2 (Xinhua) -- Afghan security forces destroyed 19,761 hectares of land used for cultivating poppy and hashish across the country in 2025, deputy government spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat announced on Thursday.
The eradication took place during 27,511 clearing operations conducted by counter-narcotics units in various provinces, according to the official.
Farmers who previously relied heavily on poppy and other illicit crops for their livelihood are now urging the Afghan government to provide alternative crops and secure markets for their produce.
The Afghan government imposed a comprehensive ban on the cultivation of illicit crops, including poppy and hashish, as well as drug processing and trafficking, in April 2022. Since then, security forces have intensified efforts to eliminate the drug threat in what was once one of the world's leading opium-producing nations. ■
