Another Taliban crackdown in Afghanistan: Internet and mobile services shut down across the country, communication blackouts

 Another Taliban crackdown in Afghanistan: Internet and mobile services shut down across the country, communication blackouts

The Taliban government in Afghanistan has shut down telecommunications services across the country. Due to which the country has reached a complete internet blackout. The move comes a few weeks after the Taliban began cutting fiber optic internet connections. As a result, international news agencies have lost contact with their offices in the capital Kabul, while mobile internet and satellite TV services have also been severely disrupted.

The Taliban have not yet given any official reason for the telecommunications shutdown. But officials have claimed that the internet has been banned to control 'immoral activities'. According to the BBC, an official said that the telecommunications shutdown will continue until further notice.

Since seizing power in 2021, the Taliban have been continuously imposing restrictions based on their own interpretation of Islamic Sharia law.

Internet watchdog organization Netblocks said in a statement published on social media that Afghanistan has now reached a complete internet blackout and that many networks have been disconnected in phases since the morning. It also affected telephone services.

Kabul-based Tolo News TV said the internet shutdown had severely affected its news broadcasts, while the Associated Press and Agence France-Presse both said they could not reach their bureaus in the capital. The BBC reported that many people in Kabul reported that the internet had stopped working completely after 5pm local time on Monday.

Diplomatic officials have expressed concerns that the internet shutdown could affect banking systems and e-commerce services across the country. Last month, a Taliban spokesman, through the governor of Balkh province, said the ban on fiber-optic internet was to prevent “evil.”

The move is the latest in a series of repressive restrictions imposed by the Taliban since their return to power. Earlier this month, the government removed books written by women from the university education system, including those on human rights and sexual harassment. Women have been particularly affected. They have been denied access to education beyond the age of 12, and their last chance to get further training has been lost, with midwifery courses quietly closing at the end of 2024.

One university student said she had no choice but to study online after her midwifery course was banned. “When I heard the internet was cut, it felt like the world had gone dark,” she said.

Mariam Soleimankhil, a former government official exiled from Afghanistan, wrote on social media about the silence on Afghan voices inside the country. She called on Starlink owner Elon Musk to break the Taliban’s censorship.

The Taliban rapidly regained control of Afghanistan within weeks of the withdrawal of US and international forces in 2021.