The State - News from June 3, 1986

One pound bars of hashish from Afghanistan, with the slogan “Smoke Russia Away” and a crudely-drawn semiautomatic rifle stamped on them, are being smuggled into the country, federal officials say. The slogan apparently refers to the lengthy war between Afghanistan guerrillas and the Soviet Union. A Drug Enforcement Administration agent told the San Francisco Chronicle that it was difficult to tell the difference between drug dealers and rebels in Afghanistan; they often may be one and the same. “Part of the year they are fighters, and part of the year they are farmers,” he said. But a State Department official suggested that “California growers” are putting the stamps on the drugs as a marketing gimmick.