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In crackdown on internet access, Taliban cuts off fibre optic connections in Afghanistan
In northern Balkh province, fibre optic internet was completely banned on the leader's orders, provincial spokesman Attaullah Zaid said Tuesday.
In a crackdown on the country's digital access, Afghanistan's Taliban authorities severed fibre optic connections in multiple provinces in what officials said was a campaign against "vice".
The order, issued directly by Taliban Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, has left tens of thousands without high-speed internet, raising fears of growing censorship and serious economic fallout, news agency AFP reported.
In northern Balkh province, fibre optic internet was completely banned on the leader's orders, provincial spokesman Attaullah Zaid said Tuesday.
"This measure was taken to prevent vice, and alternative options will be put in place across the country to meet connectivity needs," he wrote on X.
But for now, those alternatives remain vague. In affected regions, including Balkh, Badakhshan, Takhar in the north, and Kandahar, Helmand, and Uruzgan in the south, internet access has become unreliable or virtually non-existent.
According to an AFP correspondent, internet access in Balkh was now only possible via the telephone network, which is disrupted, with all operators affected.
The move has stunned both citizens and business owners, many of whom depend heavily on the internet for their livelihoods.
"If these connection problems are not resolved, we will suffer great losses," said Atta Mohammed, a marble contractor in Kandahar.
"If we don't respond to emails from our clients in Dubai and India on time, we won't be able to continue our business. I haven't slept a wink," he said.
Fibre optic is the technology that is most in use in Afghanistan, an official of another private operator in Kabul said on condition of anonymity, stating he was unaware of why the move was taken.
Meanwhile, in Nangarhar province, fibre optic access remains intact for now, but authorities there have confirmed plans to roll out the shutdown nationwide in the coming days.
"Recent studies conducted in Afghanistan show that online applications have negatively affected the economic, social, cultural, and religious foundations of society and led it towards moral corruption," Badloun said in a statement released Tuesday.
The Taliban's move is being seen by many as part of an overall strategy of moving to clamp down further on the flow of information and communication, in line with its Sharia law.
Ever since taking back power in 2021, the regime has imposed sweeping bans, especially on women, the media, and now, online spaces.
