Why do farmers in Myanmar and Afghanistan grow opium?

Why do farmers in Myanmar and Afghanistan gro...

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Is the US going to attack Iran?

For weeks, President Donald Trump has been threatening to attack Iran and he’s sent what he called an ‘armada’ of combat ships and fighter jets to the region. He’s mentioned two main reasons for the military build-up there: Iran’s nuclear programme and the killing of protesters i ...  Show more

Why young Indians are ditching clubbing for devotional concerts

Bhajan clubbing is India’s latest cultural trend. People across the country are swarming to bhajan concerts. Instead of club music and vodka shots, they’re enjoying devotional music, chanting and chai. But it’s still high energy with lots of production, like lasers. Many have pra ...  Show more

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Afghanistan's poppy problem
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Laila Haidari set up Kabul's first independent drug rehabilitation centre in 2010. Having helped her own brother to quit his heroin addiction she wanted to help others. More than 80% of the world's illegal opium and heroin comes from Afghanistan. International criminal groups hav ...  Show more

Is cannabis Africa’s next big crop?
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The age of cannabis has begun – or has it? Morocco has become the latest country in Africa to allow farmers to grow cannabis for medicinal and industrial use. Entrepreneurs say there’s good money to be made by exporting the crop to the rest of the world. But how big is this oppor ...  Show more

Taliban Heroin Gang and the Failed War on Afghanistan's Opium
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Over the last two decades, the Taliban have moved from simply taxing Afghanistan's opium farmers to controlling every link in the chain of the world's biggest heroin supply. In Afghanistan's Opium Nation, we took you through the history of Afghanistan's opium and heroin industry ...  Show more

Afghanistan's Opium Nation: Drug Lords, Warlords, and Drug Wars
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For decades, starting a few years even before the Taliban took power the first time around, Afghanistan has dominated the world’s opium and heroin market, in some years producing up to 90% of the global supply. It’s also provided hundreds of millions of all dollars for all sorts ...  Show more