Coalition Troops Snatch 30 Tons Of Drugs
Narcotics Including Hashish, Opiates, Cocaine And Amphetamines Could Have Helped Fund Taliban
14DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, July 16, 2008
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The U.S. Navy said in a statement on July 15, 2008 that coalition warships have seized 30 tons of narcotics over five months on Gulf patrols, cutting off possible funds for insurgents in Afghanistan. (AP)
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(AP) Coalition warships seized 30 tons of narcotics over five months on Gulf patrols, cutting off possible funds for insurgents in Afghanistan, the U.S. Navy said in a statement on Tuesday.
The Navy said the drug busts along the region's so called "Hash Highway" in the Persian Gulf were largely due to successful operations of the U.K. Royal Navy. Its marines and sailors intercepted 70 percent of the total narcotics haul.
Drugs seized over five months included hashish, opiates, cocaine and amphetamines, the statement said.
The U.S. Navy believes that had the illegal substances reached their final destination they "could have helped fund the insurgency fighting the Coalition Forces in Afghanistan."
The British warships involved in the operations were frigates HMS Chatham, HMS Montrose and Fand destroyer HMS Edinburgh. They were supported by the Royal Fleet Auxiliary helicopter support ship Argus and her embarked Sea King aircraft, the statement said.
The commander of Royal Navy in the Middle East Commodore Keith Winstanley said the trafficking of illegal drugs has been "one of the gravest threats to the long term security of Afghanistan and a vital source of funding for the Taliban warlords."
By seizing narcotics, the Coalition forces, patrolling the Gulf and headquartered in Manama, Bahrain, have dealt "a significant blow to the illegal trade," Winstanley said.
© MMVIII The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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Posted by GOP_forever
Isn''t that what the coward Bush did to get out of serving his country? You know who I mean? AWOL George?
Your statement #2 was pretty funny.
1. The Taliban lose their source of funding.
2. The Liberals in America lose their source of what makes them think like liberals.
Posted by newster1 at 01:46 PM : Jul 16, 2008
lolll...but if they were to admit that possibility, they would be admitting that capitalism spreads way faster than Democracy...
They can "believe" anything they like, that doesn''t make it a fact! chances are excellent the money would have gone to a handfull of drug cartels having nothing to do with insurgents OR Afghanistan.
Posted by jackobyte
-Good point. My guess would be... no. But, since we''''re the great and powerful U.S. who is going to say, "NO?" Maybe George Sr. should have been in on this deal, since it was he who was involved so deep with the Iran-Contra deal, some years ago. Kinda brings back the memories, doesn''''t it?! ...sniff...
Posted by RandyNason
______________________________
RandyNason your guess would be wrong.
The laws against illegal drugs in international waters are very straight forward and very strict.