I doubt its like this, it is more likely they just make money with and nothing else... and no one selling drugs really wants their customers to die, this is just a way too lucrative method to generate income.
Also, most of their stuff is still consumed by others in islamic countries.
And those few are among the most islamic countries existing, they would never want to poison their fellow muslim brothers.
Making some quick bucks with the infidels?
Yeah, that is much more likely, they did it before and they will do it again, trading with those in power was always very lucrative for them.
And now think how much a ton of meth would sell(especially to foreign infidels who are going to import that to their country) in their afghani currency... they would make a huge profit with it, much more than they would selling it in the region.
But, for those buying it to fly it back to their home country, the profit margin would still be incredibly huge, much larger than it would have been with any other drug, and they are well known for their trafficking operations.
I give you that, if they would want to, they could poison those batches, yeah... still absolutely unlikely.
But, this was never found out by themselves, which is obvious by the quick spread this knowledge had according to the article... I mean, 3 years ago they used the ephedra as firewood and now they're harvesting it by the ton to cook meth out of it?
In quantities far from domestic production?
Hardly believable.
I am really convinced that this comes from the same source as their sudden knowledge on how to purify morphine from opium, and consequently diacetylating it.
This was already a very successful operation and worked so well, its consequences are a problem for the intended target up to this day, and will not cease, as long as western soldiers are protecting the poppy fields down there.
And the organisation responsible still makes lots of profits with this.
So why wouldn't they try it again, now with another drug?
Besides that being easily possible in such a destabilised country, it is also very cheap to produce there.
The mexican meth must be, despite easier imported, cost considerably more due to the difficult production conditions over there... I mean, the afghan army has neither the will, the abilities, nor any reward in a "war on drugs" as it is in mexico.
Of course in consequence this knowledge reached the population as well, and domestic production began too, no wonder.
I was always convinced these captagon pills that are sold in the middle east weren't fenethylline!
Said this already in the thread about it, its way too much work to produce this instead.
And there was a huge amount of amphetamine found in one of those "captagon" labs too.
But meth? Logical of course, indeed.