The Afghanistan Journalists Center (AFJC), marking the fifth anniversary of the fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban, has released a report documenting 102 cases of media freedom violations over the past 12 months, stating that although this figure represents a decrease compared to 190 cases recorded in the fourth year of Taliban rule, the nature and severity of the crackdown on media freedom have not diminished. According to the report, during this period 15 journalists and media workers were arrested, at least 29 media outlets and media institutions were shut down or had their operating licenses revoked, and three journalists and media activists have been imprisoned for more than a year. At the same time, the ban on broadcasting images of living beings has expanded to 25 of the country’s 34 provinces, and restrictions on visual reporting, journalists’ access to information, pressure on female journalists, censorship of media content, the airing of forced confessions from detained journalists, and a two-day suspension of internet and telecommunications services have all continued. AFJC also described the implementation of the Taliban courts’ Criminal Procedure Code and the growing role of the Taliban’s Ministry of Justice, alongside the intelligence agency and the Taliban’s Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, in suppressing the media as concerning, and called on the international community to pressure the Taliban to ensure media freedom and to increase political, financial and technical support for independent media outlets and journalists at risk.
AFJC said, marking the fifth anniversary of the fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban, that the documentation of more than 100 cases of violations against journalists and media freedom reflects the continuation of a severe crackdown on media freedom and the transformation of Afghanistan into an “information prison.” According to the organization, censorship, threats, and arbitrary arrests continue to silence independent voices.
This media support organization said that since the Taliban took power, the space for media activity in Afghanistan has been severely restricted. The organization said its findings on the state of media freedom cover the period from August 15, 2025 to the present. According to the report, the media freedom crisis in the country has deepened, and the Taliban have sought to close even the smallest remaining opening for freedom of expression and media freedom.
According to the report, AFJC documented at least 102 cases of media freedom violations over the past 12 months, a figure that, statistically, represents a nearly fifty percent decrease compared to the 190 cases recorded in the fourth year of Taliban rule. However, the nature of the crackdown has not only failed to ease;t pressures and restrictions have, in fact,t intensified.
The report states that the state of media freedom in the fifth year of Taliban rule has remained severely concerning. This includes the continued arrest of journalists, the shutdown of media outlets, threats against journalists on charges of failing to comply with the Taliban regime’s sweeping media restrictions, and the suspension of operations by a large number of television stations due to the expansion of the ban on live broadcasting to additional provinces.
AFJC has documented the arrest of 15 journalists and media workers since August 2025. According to the report, three other journalists and media activists, who are not included in this figure, have been imprisoned for more than a year.
Based on these findings, at least 29 media outlets, media institutions and journalistic entities have been shut down or had their operating licenses revoked during this period on charges of failing to comply with Taliban media policies.
The report’s findings show that following the official announcement of a ban on broadcasting images of living beings in five additional provinces, including Balkh, Herat, Paktia, Uruzgan and Kapisa, this ban, since the process began in 2024, has now been officially imposed in 25 of the country’s 34 provinces.
AFJC said that the expansion of the ban on visual reporting or conducting video interviews in half of the country’s roughly 40 ministries and departments, alongside the enforcement of a ban on the use of smartphones by employees of government offices under the group’s control, has intensified restrictions on journalists’ access to information in the country.
The report states that pressure on media outlets regarding program content has increased, forcing media organizations to refrain from interviewing individuals not approved by the Taliban, while also being compelled to broadcast the group’s propaganda programs or messages.
According to the report, at least five media outlets have been forced to suspend operations for failing to comply with restrictive directives from the intelligence agency and the Taliban’s Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice regarding the coverage of political, security, and social events, or for broadcasting programs containing music.
The report states that restrictions on female journalists have increased, and pressure on media outlets over the broadcasting of women’s voices or content produced specifically for women has intensified. The voices of female journalists have been openly censored at press briefings held by senior Taliban officials, and women have been barred from attending certain programs and conferences. According to the organization, at least two radio stations have been forced to suspend operations for allowing women to call in during a live program.
AFJC said that the broadcasting of forced confessions from detained journalists has occurred for the first time of its kind. According to the organization, the Taliban’s intelligence agency, in cooperation with the group’s Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, broadcast the forced, filmed confessions of three detained journalists and media activists.
The report states that the suspension of internet access and the restriction of telecommunications services in the country, although temporary and lasting only two days, created significant hardship for the public and had a severe impact on media operations and journalists’ work.
Elsewhere in the report, it is stated that the drafting and implementation of the Taliban’s “Criminal Procedure Code for the Courts,” which is vague and contains shocking provisions regarding the punishments envisioned by the group, grants judges in the courts sweeping powers.
According to the report, although this code does not directly refer to the media, it exposes media outlets and journalists to legal threats and severe punishments, including imprisonment.
The Taliban’s Criminal Procedure Code for the Courts came into force one year after the implementation of the group’s Law for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, reflecting an intensification of the process of controlling and suppressing citizens. According to the report, the Law for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice grants the Morality Police sweeping powers to monitor citizens’ behavior, dress, and appearance, to determine what is permitted and forbidden, and even to detain and punish individuals. According to AFJC, this law has also seriously exposed media outlets and journalists, particularly female journalists, to threats and danger.
The report states that with the addition of a new repressive force to the field, while the position of the Taliban’s Ministry of Information and Culture, which is responsible for media and journalist affairs within the group’s governing structure, has been pushed sharply to the margins, the Taliban’s Ministry of Justice, alongside the intelligence agency and the group’s Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, has become a new repressive force.
AFJC said that in the most recent case, this ministry shut down a private television station, confiscated its assets, and imprisoned two of the outlet’s employees. According to the organization, given the intensifying crackdown on media freedom and independent journalism in Afghanistan, AFJC calls on the international community and global organizations that support free media to pressure the Taliban regime to ensure respect for media freedom in Afghanistan.
AFJC also calls on the international community, in solidarity with Afghanistan’s journalists and media outlets, to increase the necessary political, financial, and technical support for independent media inside and outside the country, as well as for journalists at risk.
You can read the Persian version of this report here:
مرکز خبرنگاران: در یک سال گذشته ۱۰۲ مورد نقض آزادی خبرنگاران ثبت شده است
