Mohamed Omar remembers the day he was rounded up by Taliban soldiers at Pul-e-Sukhta bridge in western Kabul, a notorious gathering place for drug addicts long before the Taliban regained power in August 2021. In recent months, the Taliban have been forcibly collecting hundreds of men from various locations around the city, including parks and hilltops, taking them to a makeshift rehabilitation center at a former US military base.
Afghanistan is home to an estimated 3.5 million drug addicts, making it the drug addiction capital of the world, according to the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement, despite the previous government’s policy of rounding up addicts and placing them in centers. The drugs of choice are heroin or methamphetamine. Beneath the Pul-e-Sukhta bridge, hundreds of men were seen squatting among piles of rubbish, syringes, and faeces, and occasionally, the corpses of those who had overdosed.
The Taliban’s return to power has seen a more aggressive campaign to remove drug addicts from the streets. Mohamed Omar says, “They used pipes to whip and beat us. I broke my finger because I didn’t want to leave the bridge and I resisted. They still forced us out.” Footage released by the Taliban government showed soldiers clearing the area of addicts who had died from overdoses, their lifeless bodies being carried away wrapped in dark grey shawls. Others who were still alive were taken out on stretchers because they were unconscious.
The rehabilitation hospital where Omar was taken is overcrowded, with 3,000 patients in a facility with 1,000 beds, and the conditions are squalid. The men are kept in the center for about 45 days and undergo an intense program before being released, but there is no certainty that they will not relapse. While most of those removed from the streets are men, some women and children have also been taken to dedicated rehabilitation centers.
Omar, like many others at the center, is severely emaciated, his brown garment – provided by the authorities – loosely hanging off him, and his face gaunt. He used to be a flight attendant, traveling to Dubai, Turkey, and Iran with Kam Air, often with VIP guests such as former presidents on the aircraft. He lost his job when Kabul fell and turned to drugs in the face of economic hardship and an uncertain future.
The Taliban have vowed to end the poppy trade, which had become a significant source of income for them during their 20-year insurgency. However, according to the UN, cultivation increased by 32% in 2022 compared to 2021. Afghanistan’s economy is on the brink of collapse due to a loss of international support, security challenges, climate-related issues, and global food inflation.
For the doctors at the center, the situation is dire, with the Taliban continuing to bring more people, and staff struggling to find space for them. “There are many professionals among this group. Smart, educated people who once had good lives. But the difficulties in our society, the poverty, and lack of jobs mean they were looking for an escape,” one doctor said. Despite the overcrowding and lack of resources, the doctors remain committed to helping these addicts.
“There is no certainty that these patients won’t relapse once they leave. But we need to keep trying and most importantly, we need to give them hope for the future. Right now, there is none,” the doctor added.
