3,500 drug addicts moved to Afghan rehab facility

The Afghan counter-narcotics police have rounded up 3,500 drug addicts from Herat, the capital of the western province over the past two days for rehabilitation.

The provincial Director of counter-narcotics police Hayatullah Rouhani said on Thursday.

Rouhani said they would be reintegrated into their families after being discharged from the rehabilitation centre.

“Four drug addicts died over the past two days and 45 more drug addicts died over the last two months,” Rouhani added.

The Taliban-led caretaker government issued a decree in April last year, banning poppy cultivation and its processing.

Since then, the Afghan police have stepped up the fight against illegal drugs.