France 24: Prices soar at opium market in Taliban-ruled Afghanistan
While the economy teeters on the brink of collapse, vendors at an opium market in southern Afghanistan say prices for their goods have skyrocketed since the Taliban takeover.
Plunging his knife into a large plastic bag filled with four kilograms (nine pounds) of what looks like brown mud, Amanullah, who asked to use a fake name, extracts a lump and places it in a small cup suspended over a primus flame.
The poppy resin quickly begins to boil and liquify, and he and his partner Mohammad Masoom can display to buyers that their opium is pure.
Read more ....
Update: Getting high: Afghan opium prices soar after Taliban takeover (Euronews)
WNU Editor: The Taliban have promised to wipe out the opium trade. But will they?
I always enjoy saying in this blog that it is always about the money. That is why I believe the Taliban are not going to kill this cash crop (for now) .... Afghanistan is the world's opium king. Can the Taliban afford to kill off their 'un-Islamic' cash cow? (Kara Fox, CNN).
