Afghan link to Seoul drug arrests

Police in South Korea say they have arrested a number of South Asian men suspected of involvement in drugs rings linked to Taleban insurgents. The men were suspected of trying to smuggle raw materials for heroin production into Afghanistan, a police spokesman said. In one raid, officers seized about 12 tons of acetic anhydride. When mixed with morphine extracted from opium poppies, the chemical produces heroin. Separate raids A total of nine people had been arrested in South Korea, the French news agency AFP quoted police as saying. Two men, an Afghan and an Indian, were arrested on Wednesday when police raided a factory in a suburb of Seoul. It was there that the 12 tons of acetic anhydride was found. One of those arrested admitted the chemicals were heading for the Taleban, police said. In a separate, earlier operation, one... [read full story]