WASHINGTON – In a worrying development for Afghanistan’s new leaders, Taliban militants are increasing their dealings with narcotics traffickers, illegal mining rings and kidnappers for ransom, a U.N. report said Monday.
“They are increasingly acting more like ‘godfathers’ than a ‘government in waiting,’ ” a report by the U.N. panel of experts on the Taliban said.
While the Taliban’s ties to drug traffickers dates back to the 1990s, the report also details the movement’s involvement in controlling natural resources, and thus depriving the central government of revenue.
Lapis lazuli mines in northeastern Badakhshan province are controlled by the Taliban who demand around $1 million annually from miners in exchange for being allowed to mine without fear of Taliban attacks, said the report.
In addition, the Taliban earn $240,000-$360,000 per year in extortion from truckers who carry the semiprecious stone away from the mines located in a predominantly Tajik-populated area.
The Taliban also pocket two-thirds of earnings from chromite mining in southeast Paktika province and an estimated $16 million annually from ruby mining in Jagdalak, east of Kabul, the report said.
Hostage-taking incidents by the Taliban have increased since 2005, and a total of at least $16 million has been paid in ransom money, according to the report.
“The scale and depth of this cooperation is new, and builds on decades of interaction between the Taliban and others involved in criminal behavior,” said the report.
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