Afghan anti-drugs judge murdered

KABUL, Sept 4 (Reuters) - The head of Afghanistan's anti-drug court was shot at on his way to work on Thursday and died later in hospital, his office said.

Judge Alim Hanif, director and chief judge of the Central Narcotics Tribunal appeals court, was leading a campaign to bring influential drug traffickers to court and punishing them for their crimes.

The Criminal Justice Task Force, which announced the judge's death, did not give any details of the attack.

Afghanistan produced about 93 percent of the world's supply of opium last year, most of which is processed to make highly addictive heroin and exported abroad.

Corruption had hobbled efforts to combat the booming opium trade with powerful drug lords evading justice by simply making a telephone call to friends in high places, a U.N. official said in July.

"Judge Hanif's vision was to see the rule of the law and justice delivered in this country," the Criminal Justice Task Force said.

(Reporting by Sanjeev Miglani; Kabul Newsroom + 93 799 335 284)