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On August 19, 2022, a user of the Islamic State (ISIS)-operated Rocket.Chat server published a 15-second video titled "The Emirate Of Narcotics," which purportedly showed narcotics being sold in an Afghanistan shop. The title alludes to the Afghan Taliban's "Islamic Emirate."
ISIS has long criticized the Afghan Taliban, saying they are not a jihadi group. In their post, the support claimed the video shows the boom in the narcotics trade in Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover following U.S. withdrawal in August 2021.
The Arabic-language post read: "The Emirate of Narcotics – An opium drug store on the side of the road in Helmand Province in southern Afghanistan. Since the apostate Taliban took power, the drug market been thriving."
The video, shot on a smartphone, shows a group of Afghans at the entrance of what appears to be a shop or a home, inside, three sealed plastic bags can be seen on the floor, apparently filled with a powdered substance.
A UN survey report issued earlier this year claimed that Hilmand remains a major hub in Afghanistan for cultivating opium poppies.
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