<p>This weekend, members of the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) successfully destroyed two heroin factories in Nangarhar &#8211; a province in eastern Afghanistan. ;</p>
<p>The factories were discovered by the Special Forces of the Ministry of Interior. Troops set out to destroy the targets around 8pm on Sunday evening. The mission was completed early Monday morning. ;</p>
<p>This is not the first time Afghan forces have been tasked with destroying heroin factories in the Nangarhar province, and these efforts come as opiate production is on the rise. ;</p>
<p>According to surveys conducted by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, there has been a <strong>43% rise in opium cultivation</strong> in Afghanistan in recent months. Over 200,000 ;acres of land in Afghanistan was used to grow opium in 2016. Production for 2016 is estimated at 4,800 metric tons. ;</p>
<p>This sharp increase is believed to be the result of governmental instability and a general lack of funds during the hot season.</p>
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<p>Opiate abuse is a major problem in the US. As I wrote in a previous article, we&rsquo;re seeing more and more babies born with opiate addictions inherited from mothers who use heroin or other drugs. ;</p>
<p>Lawmakers have addressed the issue, but have ultimately failed in reducing the flow of these dangerous drugs into the US. ;</p>
<p><strong>Editor&#8217;s note:</strong> As a former intelligence officer with the Crime and Narcotics Center I can tell you Afghanistan has always produced more opium than the rest of the world combined.  ;</p>
<p>Follow the money.</p>
<p>Could it be that Afghanistan is unstable by design  ;because it ;allows opium and heroin traffickers to operate with impunity?  ;If there were stability, the rest of the world would certainly work to eradicate the crops.</p>