KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Taliban intelligence agents have arrested Hekmat Aryan, the head of Khoshhal Radio, a private radio station in southeastern Ghazni province, according to a media watchdog.
The Afghanistan Journalist Center (AFJC) reported in a statement today that Taliban agents arrested Mr, Aryan from his office in Ghazni city on Sunday, September 29.
According to the AFJC, the Taliban authorities accused him of broadcasting a recording about Taliban suicide attacks during its conflict with the U.S. and the former government, calling the act disrespectful and insulting to the regime.
However, the media watchdog quoted Aryan’s relatives as saying that the audio clip about the Taliban suicide attacks was recorded and broadcast before the Taliban’s return to power, stressing that the current accusations against him are baseless.
AFJC expressed concern over Aryan’s detention, calling on the local Taliban authorities to release him immediately and unconditionally.
The watchdog noted that under Afghanistan’s media law, which the Taliban authorities have acknowledged, journalists and media workers are free to perform their professional duties, and the regime should not impose restrictions, threaten, or arrest them.
This incident marks the latest wave of detentions of journalists and media workers by the Taliban since their return to power in Afghanistan. Over the past three years, the regime has detained, tortured, and, in some cases, even killed dozens of them in the country.
In a report released in July, AFJC documented at least 89 incidents of violence against journalists and media workers by the Taliban since January, including 60 threats and 29 arrests.
The report highlights the growing pressure on private and independent media from Taliban authorities, particularly the General Directorate of Intelligence (GDI) and the Ministry of Virtue and Vice, which are closely monitoring media content and interfering in the operations of local outlets.
In the 2024 World Press Freedom Index by Reporters Without Borders (RSF), Afghanistan under Taliban control was ranked 178th out of 180 countries, just above Syria and Eritrea. RSF’s May report identified Afghanistan as one of the ten most dangerous countries for media personnel due to continued persecution by the Taliban.
