KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has called on the Taliban to immediately restore internet and telecommunications services across Afghanistan, warning that the ongoing blackout is cutting the country off from the outside world and putting lives at risk.
UNAMA said in a statement on Tuesday that the shutdown is severely affecting critical services, including banking, humanitarian operations, and healthcare. The blackout also restricts freedom of expression and increases the isolation of women and girls, worsening an already dire humanitarian situation in one of the world’s most crisis-stricken countries.
UNAMA said it will continue to engage with the Taliban, as mandated by the UN Security Council, to support the Afghan people.
Internet and telecommunications services have been down across Afghanistan since 5:00 p.m. local time on Monday, September 29, with no restoration reported. The Taliban have not issued an official explanation for the nationwide disruption. Previously, the group’s supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, described the internet as the “root of all evil” and a driver of “immoral activities.”
The blackout has also affected transportation and aviation services. Flight-tracking data from FlightRadar24 shows that at least 10 flights to and from Kabul International Airport—five incomings and five outgoing—have been canceled since Monday evening.
Rights groups have condemned the shutdown as a violation of fundamental freedoms, while media watchdogs warn that it is a deliberate attempt to silence independent reporting and further isolate Afghanistan from the global community.
Over the past four years, the Taliban have imposed extensive restrictions on personal freedoms, media, and communications. Activists say the latest blackout is a further indication of the group’s tightening control and escalating repression.
