US and Afghan airstrikes have destroyed nine Taliban drug factories and labs, killing 44 suspected traffickers in a border area of southern Helmand province.

The combined offensive is aimed at targeting the revenue streams of terrorists, according to officials.

Regional military corps commander, General Wali Mohammad Ahmadzai, told Voice of America that the airstrikes focused on a narcotics market run by the Taliban in Bahramcha, a remote, divided village on the border with Pakistan, which serves as a main center for shipping drugs from Afghanistan.