Funding its war against the United States, the Taliban reaped millions from boom towns trading opium, heroin and meth. Victorious, the group crushed the trade, leaving ghost towns in its wake.
Tag: Poppies
South Korea Bans Everything Bagel Seasoning
The seasoning is sold by Trader Joe’s, a brand whose popularity has skyrocketed in the region in recent years.
How Fentanyl Laid Waste to Guatemala’s Time-Worn Opium Trade
Reshaping the drug war in one of Central America’s most lawless corners, the fentanyl boom has devastated the trade in opium poppies used to make heroin.
Reckoning With Memories of Budapest
A Times journalist spent three months capturing a contemporary portrait of Hungary’s capital, where he lived for several years as a child in the early ’90s.
Your Tuesday Briefing: Europe Nears an Oil Embargo
The bloc is poised to block the vast majority of Russia’s oil imports.
Afghanistan Tries to Stamp Out Opium Again
The multibillion-dollar trade has survived previous bans. Now, the Taliban are going after solar-powered water pumps to try to dry up poppy crops in the middle of a national economic crisis.
Taliban Outlaw Opium Poppy Cultivation in Afghanistan
The move will have far-reaching consequences for the many farmers who turned to the illicit crop as a brutal drought and economic crisis have gripped the country.
In Afghanistan, War and Climate Change Collide
Unrest and climate change are creating an agonizing feedback loop that punishes some of the world’s most vulnerable people.
An Ancient Hill and Forgotten Dead: Afghanistan’s Haunted Outpost
Its name was Observation Post Rock. The outpost is the backdrop for a ghost story, and is known for strange voices, radio static and the creeping fear of being watched.
Mexican Opium Prices Plummet, Driving Poppy Farmers to Migrate
The drop in prices is leading poppy farmers to seek work in the United States and other places.