U.S. Forces Targeting Drug Barons in Afghanistan

Among the insidious forces of terror located in Afghanistan – hiding in caves and plotting revenge for slights imagined and real – there is also another group in Afghanistan that is being targeted for destruction by U.S. forces; namely, drug lords. A U.S. military list to "kill or capture" includes 367 wanted insurgents. But on that list are at least 50 drug traffickers who are supporting the Taliban through their ill-gotten financial gains. To combat the financial pipeline to their enemies, U.S. and NATO forces are regularly attacking and destroying drug warehouses and the hideouts of drug dealers, a new strategy that gets to the heart of some of Afghanistan’s biggest problems.

To make things perfectly clear to soldiers operating in the area, U.S. commanders have placed no restrictions on the use of force against such drug traffickers, meaning that they are not be treated as civilians and can be killed or captured without prejudice. Rear Admiral Gregory Smith, top U.S. spokesman in Afghanistan, noted, "The list of targets are those that are contributing to the insurgency, so they key leadership, and part of that obviously is the link between the narco industry and the militants."

U.S. commanders aren’t placing suspects on the list without evidence, however. To be added to the list – a veritable death warrant – two human sources must verify an individual’s engagement in insurgent support and a "substantial amount of evidence" must be presented. Said Lt. Colonel Todd Vician, a U.S. military spokesman in the area, "It’s terrorists with links to the drug trade rather than drug traffickers with links to terrorism."