Nai, an organization supporting media outlets from Afghanistan in exile, has said that more than 700 cases of violence against journalists and media workers have been recorded in Afghanistan over the five years since the Taliban takeover.
Nai said in a statement issued on Wednesday, August 12, that around 400 of these cases involved the arrest and imprisonment of media workers and activists from organizations defending freedom of expression.
According to the statement, at least six journalists have also lost their lives in Afghanistan over the past five years.
Nai added that the recorded cases of violence also included beatings and physical violence against journalists and media workers, with the Taliban identified as the perpetrators or principal parties responsible for the violence in most of these cases.
NaI also said that over the past five years, the Taliban have, on average, arrested two journalists or media workers every nine days, with the duration of the arrests ranging from several hours to more than a year.
According to the statement, journalists have frequently been arrested by Taliban intelligence and held at the Directorate 40 detention facility in Kabul or at intelligence detention facilities operated by the group in the provinces.
The organization added that some journalists and media workers were also imprisoned at Bagram or Pul-e-Charkhi prisons in Kabul following investigations.
Nai said that approximately 2,000 media workers are currently working for media outlets directly or indirectly managed by the Taliban.
