Armed conflict and organised crime: the case of Afghanistan

April 2023

Evidence Review Paper

Professor Annette Idler, University of Oxford

Frederik Florenz, University of Oxford

Ajmal Burhanzoi, University of Toronto

Dr John Collins, Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime

Marcena Hunter, Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime

Antônio Sampaio, Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime

Skyline of Kabul, buildings with mountains in the background against a blue, red sky

Kabul, Afghanistan. Photography: Mohammad Husaini


PUBLICATION SUMMARY

This paper contributes to research on the relationship between conflict and organised crime (the crime–conflict nexus), using Afghanistan as a case study. For the past four decades, Afghanistan has been plagued by internal armed conflict, influenced by local, national, regional and international external actors, and the intricate relationships among them. To varying degrees, power, politics and criminality informed these relationships. Organised crime provide actors in Afghanistan with significant political power, while powerful political actors are uniquely positioned to reap the profits of the country’s criminal markets.

This paper gives an account of the existing literature on Afghanistan’s crime–conflict nexus, identifying some of the key insights that this literature has revealed. To do so, it uses a four-pronged framework, exploring how conflict has fuelled organised crime in Afghanistan; how organised crime has fuelled conflict; how conflict over the control of illicit markets has resulted; and how organised crime has contributed to the erosion of the state. By assessing the literature on Afghanistan’s crime–conflict nexus, the paper identifies knowledge gaps and suggests areas for future research.

 

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Organised crime groups, criminal agendas, violence and conflict: implications for engagement, negotiations and peace processes

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