Linking The Drug Trade To Al Qaeda And Terrorism

U.S. Prosecution Links Drugs To Terrorism -- L.A. Times

The case -- the first of its kind -- portrays northwest Africa as a new danger zone. Three men are accused of being Al Qaeda associates and conspiring to smuggle cocaine.

Reporting from Washington - Three men alleged to be Al Qaeda associates were charged Friday with conspiring to smuggle cocaine through Africa -- the first U.S. prosecution linking the terrorist group directly to drug trafficking.

The three suspects, who were charged in federal court in New York, are believed to be from Mali and were arrested in Ghana during a Drug Enforcement Administration sting. Although U.S. authorities have alleged that Al Qaeda and the Taliban profit from Afghanistan's heroin trade, the case is the first in which suspects linked to Al Qaeda have been charged under severe narco-terrorism laws, federal officials said.

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More News On Al Qaeda And Links To The International Drug Trade

Arrests in Africa connect Al Qaeda, drug traffickers -- Boston.com/AP
US arrests three Africans in 'al-Qaeda cocaine sting' -- BBC
Associates of Al Qaeda Group Charged With Drug Trafficking -- Baltimore Sun
U.S. holds 3 in alleged narcoterrorism case -- Washington Post
U.S. Charges 3 Malians in Drug Plot -- New York Times

The Drug-Terrorist Link Means Wars Can Last Indefinitely

From Counter Terrorism Blog:

The Brits are finally willing to lay out some of the truths about the war in Afghanistan, truths that apply in many other parts of the world, in a pattern that we continue to see growing.

According to the Daily Telegraph, a confidential report to the prime minister concludes that the drug trade will prolong the Taliban insurgency idenfinitely:

"Growing links between the drugs trade and the insurgency in the South will provide longevity to the Taliban," the UK document says. "In the south, the drugs trade is fuelling the insurgency."

It adds: "This is compounded by government corruption. Karzai chooses to avoid rocking the boat with powerful narco figures and has not blocked their appointment as governors or other senior officials."

In turn, Mr Karzai's failure to tackle corruption and the drug lords "only increases popular disillusion," further boosting the insurgency, the paper says.

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Previous Post: World's Biggest Drug Seizure In Afghanistan

My Comment: As I had posted earlier in the day, the Taliban clearly receives a good portion of its funds from the drug trade. The unwillingness to fight this trade and the corruption that it spawns means that Nato will never be able to get a handle on the insurgency for a very long time. I doubt that it is in the mindset of many in the west that their soldiers will be stuck in Afghanistan for the next 30 years.

If there is no frontal assault on this trade, and the eradication of the poppy and marijuana fields that produce the drugs that the Taliban need to grow .... the west will lose this war.