KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – The Afghanistan Journalists Center (AFJC) has documented 102 violations of media and journalist freedom over the past 12 months, including the detention of 15 journalists and media workers, as the Taliban continue to tighten controls on the press.
In a report released on Thursday, the watchdog said the media environment has become increasingly restrictive since the Taliban returned to power in August 2021, with journalists facing detention, censorship and tighter controls over what outlets can publish and broadcast.
The watchdog said 15 journalists and media workers were detained during the past 12 months. Three other journalists and media activists who were not included in that figure have remained in prison for more than a year and are serving sentences, it said.
At least 29 media outlets, media organizations and journalistic institutions were shut down or had their operating licenses revoked during the reporting period, according to the report. Some were penalized for allegedly violating media regulations imposed by the Taliban authorities.
The AFJC also reported the continued expansion of restrictions on visual media. The Taliban have formally prohibited the publication and broadcasting of images of living beings in 25 of Afghanistan’s 34 provinces, according to the watchdog.
The restrictions have forced some television stations to suspend operations or switch to radio broadcasting, while journalists have faced limitations on filming government officials, conducting video interviews and covering public events.
The watchdog said restrictions on access to information had also increased. In some government institutions, employees have been prohibited from using smartphones, making it more difficult for journalists to obtain information and document events, it said.
The AFJC said media outlets were under growing pressure over the content of their programs and were increasingly required to avoid interviewing people who were not approved by the Taliban authorities. Some outlets have also been required to broadcast government programs and promotional messages.
At least five media outlets were forced to stop operating after failing to comply with orders from the Taliban intelligence service and the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice while covering political, security and social events or broadcasting programs containing background music, the watchdog said.
Restrictions on women journalists have also tightened. The AFJC said female journalists had been prevented from attending some press conferences and events, while women’s voices had been restricted or prohibited from being broadcast in some areas.
At least two radio stations were forced to halt operations after allowing women to participate in live programs by telephone, according to the report.
The watchdog also said Taliban authorities had published forced confessions by journalists and media activists. It documented video recordings of forced confessions involving three journalists and media workers during the past year.
The AFJC called on the international community and international media organizations to press the Taliban authorities to respect media freedom and to release journalists detained for their work. It also urged greater political, financial and technical support for independent media outlets operating inside and outside Afghanistan and for journalists facing threats.
Press freedom was widely viewed as one of the notable developments under Afghanistan’s previous Western-backed government, which saw a rapid expansion of television, radio, newspapers and online media. Since the Taliban takeover, authorities have imposed broad restrictions, repeatedly detained journalists and closed large numbers of outlets.
Afghanistan ranked 175th out of 180 countries in Reporters Without Borders’ 2025 World Press Freedom Index, ahead of only Syria, Iran, North Korea and Eritrea. Media rights organizations say more than half of the country’s media outlets have closed since August 2021, while many journalists have fled the country or stopped working.
