Kabul, Nov 23 (IANS): Afghan security forces have dismantled nine clandestine drug processing labs and set on fire 16,600 kg illicit drugs in Afghanistan's Ghor province, the office of Deputy Minister of Interior for Counter-Narcotics said in a statement on Saturday.

Units of counter-narcotic police launched separate operations on the outskirts of Firoz Koah city, capital of Ghor province, destroying the nine drug processing labs and discovering and burning the 16,600 kg illicit drugs, the statement said, Xinhua news agency reported.

Without furnishing details on whether anyone was arrested for involvement in the case, the statement added that the drugs were used in manufacturing heroin.

In addition, police have rounded up 156 drug users in the provinces of Balkh, Nangarhar, Panjshir, and Kapisa and shifted them to a rehabilitation centre for treatment, the statement said.

The Afghan caretaker government has stepped up its crackdown on illicit drugs and those involved in the business, vowing to fight the menace until the country is free from poppy cultivation and substances used in the manufacturing of heroin.