Reply #29: Nato dumps Afghan opium adverts

[DrDebug]

Wednesday, 25 April 2007, 09:30 GMT 10:30 UK
Nato dumps Afghan opium adverts

Nato forces in Afghanistan say that they have withdrawn paid adverts on a radio station which implied it was acceptable to grow opium poppies.

A Nato spokesman told the BBC that the advert was "ambiguously worded".

The decision followed complaints from the Afghan government and the UN that the alliance was appearing to condone the illicit crop.

The advert was paid for by the Nato-led International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) and aired in Helmand province.

The province in the south is one of the largest opium-producing area in the world and the centre of a large Nato-led anti-Taleban offensive.

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http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/6590993.stm