Taliban’s ‘reforms’ lead to 21,000 musical instruments destroyed in Afghanistan

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By Ayaz Gul
VOA News
August 20, 2024

Islamabad — Taliban morality police in Afghanistan said Tuesday that they had “seized and destroyed” more than 21,000 musical instruments over the past year as part of a crackdown on what they called anti-Islam practices.

Officials of the so-called Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice discussed their “annual performance” at a news conference in Kabul a day after Taliban authorities publicly staged a mass burning of hundreds of musical instruments in the nearby northern Parwan province.

The provincial moral police department also urged residents not to use musical instruments at weddings and other celebrations.

Speaking in the Afghan capital Tuesday, ministry officials claimed to have destroyed thousands of “immoral films” and blocked many more “from use on personal computers” nationwide “as part of societal reforms” being undertaken by the Taliban administration. They did not elaborate on the nature of the films.

The ministry said without discussing specifics that it had “successfully implemented 90% of reforms across audio, visual, and print media” in Afghanistan.

Free media advocacy groups and local journalists say that Taliban leaders have significantly curtailed press freedom and access to information in the country.

The Islamist Taliban revived the Ministry of Vice and Virtue to police public morality after retaking control of the war-shattered, impoverished South Asian nation three years ago when all U.S.-led Western troops withdrew from Afghanistan after their involvement in the war for almost two decades.

The Taliban ministry has introduced strict guidelines for local media professionals, binding female presenters and guests to comply with an “Islamic” dress code on air requiring that only their eyes be visible.

Women are prohibited from working on national radio and television stations, and dramas featuring female performers are banned. De facto Afghan authorities have also enforced strict “gender-based segregation” in workplaces at large.

Mohammad Khalid Hanafi, the minister of vice and virtue, was quoted by state media as saying on Monday that the Taliban “are determined to implement Islamic Sharia and no one’s pressure is acceptable in this regard.”

The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said last month that the Taliban’s morality police were contributing to “a climate of fear and intimidation” among the people and identified the ministry as the leading violator of human rights in the Taliban government, which is not recognized by any country.

The U.N. report noted that the activities of the de facto ministry have had “negative impacts on the enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms”… in Afghanistan, with a discriminatory and disproportionate impact on women.”

The morality police department has banned women’s beauty salons, prohibited females from traveling without a male guardian beyond 78 kilometers from their home limits, and banned them from visiting parks, gyms, and public baths.

The Taliban have also banned school education for girls beyond the sixth grade, and many women are not allowed to work in public as well as private organizations, including U.N agencies.

The U.N. Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization said in its new report last week that Taliban authorities had “deliberately deprived” 1.4 million girls of schooling since returning to power, putting at risk the future of an entire generation and making Afghanistan the only country in the world to deny girls ages 12 and older access to education.

Taliban officials dismiss criticism of their governance as interference in the country’s internal matters and defend their policies, saying they are aligned with Afghan culture and Islamic law.

During the previous Taliban rule in Kabul from 1996 to 2001, the Ministry of Vice and Virtue garnered notoriety for its arbitrary abuses. Particularly, women and girls were banned entirely from education and employment at that time.

Collective Punishment: The Absence of Logic in Taliban Governance

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Daikundi

8am: Three days ago, media reported that a local Taliban official in Daykundi province, after his motorcycle went missing, extracted 60,000 Afghanis in compensation from the local people. According to the reports, a man named Haji Khayat, the criminal director of Khedir district in Daykundi, went to visit a person named Haji Khodadad and his motorcycle disappeared. The Taliban valued the motorcycle at 70,000 Afghanis, and Haji Khayat collected 60,000 Afghanis of that amount. The Taliban forced the people of the Korga area in the Khedir district to pay compensation for the motorcycle. 500 families, in addition to the host Haji Khodadad, delivered the money to the local Taliban office in Khedir district on Thursday, August 15. Each family paid 100 Afghanis, and Haji Khodadad paid 10,000 Afghanis in compensation. If this were anywhere other than Afghanistan, someone encountering such news would surely think it was a joke; however, in Afghanistan under Taliban rule, people experience the reality of such news firsthand because they face such illogical and inhumane decisions from the ruling regime daily. In Afghanistan, when someone reads such news, they are not amused but rather filled with frustration and anger, lamenting the misery and misfortune of the people. Click here to read more (external link).

Public Health Ministry tackles monkeypox threat

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Ariana: In a proactive move to protect the public, the Ministry of Public Health has announced steps to prevent the potential spread of monkeypox – also known as mpox – within the country. Mawlavi Noor Jalal Jalali, the acting minister, convened a meeting with health officials to discuss plans for containing the monkeypox outbreak that has affected parts of Africa, Europe, and Asia. “Although no cases of monkeypox have been reported in Afghanistan so far, we are taking this threat seriously and putting preventive measures in place,” Mawlavi Jalali stated. Click here to read more (external link).

Pakistan: Gunfight with militants near Afghan border kills 3 troops

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By Ayaz Gul
VOA News
August 19, 2024

ISLAMABAD — Pakistan reported Monday that at least three soldiers had been killed in clashes with militants attempting to cross over from Afghanistan.

A military statement said that Pakistani forces had intercepted the predawn infiltration attempt in the Bajaur border district and “effectively engaged and thwarted” it. The ensuing intense gunfight also killed five assailants and wounded several others, it added.

The reported militant casualties could not be immediately confirmed by independent sources, nor were there any claims of responsibility for the attempted incursion.

However, the military blamed fugitive militants associated with Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a globally designated terrorist organization, for carrying out the attack from their bases on the Afghan side of the border.

“Pakistan has consistently been asking [the] interim Afghan government to ensure effective border management on their side of the border,” the military stated, referring to the neighboring country’s de facto Taliban rulers.

The statement renewed Islamabad’s call for Kabul to “fulfill its obligations and deny the use of Afghan soil by Khwarij (official reference to TTP in local language) for perpetuating acts of terrorism against Pakistan.”

Taliban authorities deny the Pakistani allegations, asserting they have secured and “firmly” control the entire Afghan territory.

“Afghanistan is not a threat to any country,” Taliban-run state TV quoted Hamdullah Fitrat, the deputy government spokesperson, as saying Monday.

“The Islamic Emirate has made it clear that it does not allow the territory of Afghanistan to be used against the security of any other nation,” Fitrat stated, using the official title of their government, which is not recognized by any country.

Pakistan has reported a dramatic surge in TTP attacks in the country since the Taliban reclaimed power in Kabul three years ago. The violence has killed and wounded several thousand civilians and security forces, according to official and independent reports.

The rise in militancy has strained relations between the two countries, sharing a nearly 2,600-kilometer (1,616-mile) border.

The United Nations has backed Islamabad’s complaints and, in a security assessment released last month, described TTP as “the largest terrorist group” in Afghanistan.

The report stated that up to 6,500 TTP militants operate on Afghan soil with the growing support of the Taliban government to launch cross-border attacks in Pakistan. The U.N. noted that the militants are being equipped and trained in al-Qaida-run training camps in Afghanistan.

The de facto Kabul authorities dismissed the U.N. findings as propaganda at the time.

Afghanistan U-17 football team to face Kyrgyzstan today

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Khaama: The Afghanistan Football Federation has announced that the national U-17 football team will face Kyrgyzstan today. The match is scheduled for 6:00 PM Kyrgyzstan time on Monday, August 19, as part of the Central Asian Football Association (CAFA) Championship. This game is part of the Group A stage of the Central Asian Championship, which features the U-17 teams competing for the title. The match will be held in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. Click here to read more (external link).

Other Afghan Sports News

Killed Four Taliban Members in Kabul, Claims AFF

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Afghanistan International: The Afghanistan Freedom Front (AFF) has claimed responsibility for an explosion in Kabul’s Fourth Security District. In a video clip released by the group, they stated that on Saturday evening, they targeted a convoy of the Taliban’s Ministry of Interior in the Parwan-3 area. Click here to read more (external link).

Taliban-Led Government Celebrates 105th Anniversary Of Afghan Independence

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Yaqoob Mujahid

By RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi
August 18 2024

Top officials of the Taliban-led government in Afghanistan marked 105 years of of the country’s independence on August 18 by demanding mutual respect from the international community.

Afghanistan gained its independence in August 1919 after the signing of the Anglo-Afghan Treaty, which ended British control over the country’s foreign affairs.

Afghanistan currently remains unrecognized internationally, largely because of the restrictions the Taliban-led government has placed on women since it returned to power in August 2021.

The anniversary of the signing of the Anglo-Afghan Treaty was marked at a meeting of top Taliban leaders in Kabul broadcast live by the Taliban-controlled National Radio and Television.

Mullah Mohammad Yaqoob, the Taliban’s acting defense minister, told the meeting that the government wants strong relations with the world based on mutual respect but will never give in to pressure.

He also said the Taliban, which seized power after the U.S.-backed government collapsed and its leaders fled into exile, will never allow the Islamic State and other destructive groups to create chaos in Afghanistan.

“Whether they are Daesh (Islamic State) or other rebels, they should hear…that we have not surrendered to anyone’s power at any cost. By any name, we have established the Islamic system in this land. We will defend it till death and the last century.”

The international community has previously expressed concern about the presence of the extremist Islamic State group in Afghanistan, while the Taliban has said it is the only group capable of ruling and establishing security in the country.

Hamid Karzai, who served as the first elected president of Afghanistan from 2004 to 2014, marked the anniversary of the signing of the treaty by calling on the Taliban to allow girls and women to attend school and university.

“I call on the caretaker Islamic government to open the doors of schools and universities in the country as soon as possible so that girls equipped with the jewels of knowledge can play their part in the development of the country alongside their brothers,” Karzai said on X. “Education and national unity are the forces that will keep the country strong.”

Since returning to power in August 2021, the Taliban has banned girls and women from studying beyond primary school.

The United Nations said on August 15 that at least 1.4 million girls in Afghanistan have been denied access to secondary education and this has almost wiped out two decades of steady progress for education in Afghanistan, leaving the future of an entire generation in jeopardy.

Copyright (c) 2024. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave NW, Ste 400, Washington DC 20036.