this post was submitted on 15 Aug 2023
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[โ€“] BirdyBoogleBop@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)
[โ€“] GaveUp@hexbear.net 54 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

The source for that claim is entirely from the US state department. Not to mention some expert disputed that claim

"The estimated all-time high for opium production was set in 2017 at 9,900 tons worth some $1.4 billion in sales by farmers or roughly 7% of Afghanistan's GDP, the UNODC reported."

"Mansfield says his field studies show the most the Taliban can earn from illicit opiates is about $40 million annually"

So the Taliban made at most 40 million per year while the entire country (under US occupation and control) made over 1 billion per year