RASC News Agency: Local sources have revealed that the Taliban in Laghman province are pressuring young people to endorse and promote their regime. On Sunday, December 8, sources confirmed that Abdul Noor Rasooli, the head of the Taliban’s Information and Culture Directorate in Laghman, held a meeting with several youths, urging them to actively advocate for the group’s cause. Rasooli reportedly stressed that the regime’s survival hinges on propaganda and shaping public opinion. He called on the youth to participate regularly in meetings organized by the Information and Culture Directorate to further these efforts.
This is not the first time the Taliban have sought to manipulate public narratives. They have previously coerced journalists in various provinces to propagate the group’s agenda in a bid to project an image of popular support for their government to the international community. Since seizing power over three years ago, the Taliban have systematically silenced dissent, implementing their policies through intimidation, violence, and force. Their rise to power was facilitated by suicide bombings, terror campaigns, and covert agreements with U.S. forces and the corrupt Ghani administration. Post-victory, they have imposed a regime marked by brutality, repression, and disregard for the will of the Afghanistani people.
Now, seemingly aware of the limits of ruling without public consent, the Taliban are resorting to intimidation and coercion to manufacture an illusion of popular approval. In provinces like Laghman, they continue to exert pressure on the public, using false narratives and fear to maintain their grip on power. Such actions reveal their underlying insecurity and their struggles to gain genuine legitimacy amid widespread discontent.
