Authorities in Afghanistan’s eastern Nangarhar province have officially banned local officials from taking photographs and conducting video interviews with media representatives, the Afghan Journalism Center (AFJC) said.
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According to the center, “the ongoing Taliban offensive against media freedom in Afghanistan is intensifying.”
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“This ban is a very worrying trend, as Nangarhar becomes the fifth province to introduce such restrictions,” the statement said.
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It is noted that the director of one of the Nangarhar media outlets, who wished to remain anonymous for security reasons, said that the order to do so was given to local officials by the deputy governor of the province, Azizullah Mustafa.
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“Director of the Nangarhar Provincial Department of Information and Culture, Kureishi Badloun, informed a group of officials and local media leaders about this order via WhatsApp on November 12. The order, in part, states that in accordance with the recent morality law of the Ministry of Virtue and Vice, approved by the Supreme Leader Islamic Emirate (self-name of the Taliban political regime) Heybatullah Akhundzada, military council The province has decided that from now on, officials are prohibited from photographing living beings and broadcasting them,” the statement said.
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The deputy governor of Nangarhar also ordered that all communications from officials in the province must now be transmitted to the media exclusively in written form. The media are only allowed to use images of government buildings, signs or logos. In addition, he ordered that from now on any interviews with local officials be conducted only in audio and not video format.
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According to human rights activists AFJC, similar restrictions are in place in the provinces of Kandahar, Takhar, Badghis and Helmand, which has already led to the closure of both public and private television channels there.
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Article 17 of the morality law, which came into force in August 2024, specifically stipulates that images of living beings must not be published.
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“AFJC is alarmed by the imposition of this ban in Nangarhar province, viewing it as a repressive measure that severely limits the media’s ability to report on local government, undermines transparency and prevents public discussion of issues. This situation threatens the freedom of journalists and access to information. Extending similar restrictions to others province indicates an alarming deterioration in the situation with media freedom and an escalation in suppression tactics,” the Afghan Journalism Center said in a statement.
