US military blows up piles of poppy seeds to win the "hearts of minds" of Afghan citizens

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According to antiwar.com, the US military has "dropped several tons of explosives on a field in the Helmand Province, destroying mounds of poppy seeds which had been gathered there."

State Department official Tony Wayne says the attacks are part of the campaign to win the "hearts of minds" of Afghanistan's civilian population. He claimed farmers were being "intimidated" into growing poppies instead of wheat, which the US has been attempting to subsidize as an alternative crop.

US Bombs Poppy Seeds in Afghanistan 'Show of Force'