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
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.