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1/10 The CIA’s secret Afghan war of the 1980s didn’t just fight the Soviets, it helped turn Afghanistan & Pakistan into the world’s heroin capital. A look at how U.S. intelligence fueled the drug trade and backed military dictatorships. 🧵
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2/10 In 1979, the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan. The CIA responded with ‘Operation Cyclone,’ pouring billions into funding & arming the Mujahideen via Pakistan’s ISI. What followed was a surge in opium production that transformed the region into a narco-state.
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3/10 Afghan opium output jumped from 100 tons in the 1970s to 2,000 tons by 1991. By the mid-80s, Afghanistan-Pakistan heroin supplied 60% of the U.S. market, 80% of Europe’s. This flood of drugs created a heroin epidemic in Pakistan, where addiction rates soared.
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4/10 The ISI, Pakistan’s powerful intelligence agency, controlled the CIA’s arms pipeline. Many of its favored Afghan commanders, like Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, became drug lords, using CIA-supplied weapons & funds to dominate the heroin trade.
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5/10 The CIA turned a blind eye. A 1986 U.S. State Dept. report acknowledged opium was financing the war, but officials admitted stopping the drug trade was “not a priority.” Convoys carrying CIA weapons into Afghanistan often returned to Pakistan loaded with opium.
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6/10 The Pakistani military, led by Gen. Zia-ul-Haq, was deeply complicit. The ISI oversaw heroin labs along the Afghan border, while Pakistan’s National Logistics Cell—run by the army—allegedly moved drugs alongside arms shipments.
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7/10 The U.S. knew Pakistan’s generals were profiting off drugs. In 1984, VP George H.W. Bush visited Islamabad and publicly praised Zia’s anti-drug stance—while privately ignoring intelligence that Pakistani officials were involved in heroin trafficking.
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8/10 By the late 80s, Afghanistan & Pakistan were the top heroin suppliers worldwide. As the CIA wrapped up its war, it left behind a thriving drug trade that had entrenched corruption, funded warlords, and created lasting instability in the region.
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9/10 Fast forward to 2001: After 9/11, the U.S. returned to Afghanistan, allying once again with warlords—many of whom had enriched themselves through drugs. By 2007, Afghan opium production hit 8,200 tons, fueling both the insurgency and criminal networks.
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