By Siddhi Mahatole VOA News August 14, 2024 washington — The suspension of broadcast licenses, arrests and closures of news outlets in Afghanistan show that the Taliban continue to exert pressure on media, watchdogs say. In recent weeks, the Taliban-run Afghanistan Telecom Regulatory Authority, or ATRA, suspended 17 broadcast licenses assigned to 14 media outlets in eastern
By RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi December 19, 2023 An Afghan journalist detained by the Taliban’s intelligence service has been released amid increasing concerns over mounting Taliban harassment of Afghan journalists. The Taliban detained Ruhollah Sangar, a correspondent for the independent Tolo TV, on December 17 while he was reporting from Charikar, the capital of the northern Parwan
8am: According to an anonymous local media official in Badghis, who spoke to Haht-e Subh on Saturday, July 15, journalists are only allowed to cover events if they are accompanied by local Taliban officials. “We are not granted permission to report on news; we are unable to publish articles on suicide cases or provide coverage
Roshan Noorzai VOA News January 19, 2023 WASHINGTON — From regulations on what can be covered to rules on where women can work, journalists say it is increasingly difficult to report in Afghanistan. Restrictions on media “increased in the past year,” said Dawood Mubarak Oglu, a reporter who covers security and politics for the independent media
Tolo News: The ministry of communications and information has blocked more than 23 million websites that were posting immoral content in Afghanistan, the acting minister said on Thursday. “We have blocked 23.4 million websites. They are changing their pages every time. So, when you block one website another one will be active,” acting Minister Najibullah
Waheed Faizi VOA News July 21, 2022 Australian journalist Lynne O’Donnell has covered Afghanistan for the past 20 years, working for publications and news organizations such as Foreign Policy, The Associated Press and Agence France-Presse. But during a trip this month to Kabul, Taliban officials came to the guest house where she was staying and
8am: The Taliban have imposed certain restrictions and censorships on media and freedom of speech since August 2021. In addition to the Taliban’s interferences in media’s scope of work, the factors such as security threats, and lack of funds have forced many media channels to shut down. It is recently reported that more than 50%
8am: The Free Speech Hub has reported that the Taliban forces had forcibly canceled the news conference of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ). Before holding the conference, a bunch of Taliban forces rushed to the meeting place, threatening and pressuring the federation’s officials to cancel the conference, according to the FSH’s statement. Click here
8am: The intelligence department of the Taliban acting government has said that the media outlets should not spread false news and baseless rumors. The remarks came after reports of persecution and detention of female protesters in Kabul by the Taliban. Click here to read more (external link).
Masood Farivar VOA News October 1, 2021 WASHINGTON — Several Afghan news outlets received letters from the Taliban this week, with instructions including on how the group wants to be identified in news coverage. The letter – obtained by VOA – says that news organizations should refer to the Taliban by their official name and prohibits