RASC News Agency: In yet another alarming escalation of its systematic assault on press freedom, the Taliban has detained three more journalists in the northeastern province of Takhar, further tightening its grip on independent media in Afghanistan. The Afghanistan Journalists Center (AFJC) confirmed on Wednesday that Naeem Ahmadi, Farid Sadat, and Amin Rahimi all active reporters in Takhar were arrested on Tuesday by Taliban intelligence operatives. These arrests are part of a broader crackdown that has increasingly targeted journalists, silencing voices critical of the regime and dismantling the fragile remnants of Afghanistan’s once-vibrant press landscape.
These latest detentions come on the heels of a similar wave of arrests reported just days earlier. According to local sources, Sayed Munir Hadaf, editor-in-chief of Tasvir Weekly and head of the National Journalists Union of Takhar; Asadullah Taimoor, a local correspondent; and Nusratullah Ebrahimi, a reporter for Ariana News, were also taken into custody by Taliban forces. Reports suggest that several of the detainees have been subjected to torture, a chilling indication of the Taliban’s use of brutality to stifle dissent. The AFJC issued a strong condemnation of these arrests, calling on the Taliban to immediately and unconditionally release all detained journalists. “Journalism is not a crime,” the Center’s statement read, urging the de facto authorities to cease their persecution of media workers and abide by international norms protecting freedom of expression.
According to the AFJC, at least 10 journalists and media professionals are currently either imprisoned by the Taliban or serving sentences handed down by the group’s unrecognized judicial structures. Alarmingly, six of them have already been sentenced to prison terms ranging from seven months to three years, often on vague or fabricated charges such as “espionage,” “defamation,” or “violating Islamic values.” Since seizing power in August 2021, the Taliban has imposed sweeping and draconian restrictions on Afghanistan’s media sector, obliterating two decades of progress in independent journalism. Media outlets have been forced to shut down or self-censor under the threat of violence. Women journalists have been driven out of newsrooms, and local reporters who continue to work face arbitrary detention, harassment, and torture.
The Taliban’s deliberate targeting of the press is now being recognized globally. In its 2025 Press Freedom Index, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) ranked Afghanistan 175th out of 180 countries, with an abysmal score of 17.88. The report describes Afghanistan as one of the most dangerous places in the world for journalists, underscoring the collapse of media freedom under Taliban rule. This sustained assault on the media does more than silence journalists it strips the public of their right to information, erodes civic engagement, and entrenches an authoritarian regime that thrives on opacity, fear, and violence. The Taliban’s attempt to criminalize journalism is a stark warning to the international community: without decisive action, Afghanistan will remain a graveyard for press freedom and human rights.
The international community, media watchdogs, and human rights defenders must respond with more than statements of concern. Concrete, coordinated efforts diplomatic, legal, and economic are urgently needed to hold the Taliban accountable and to ensure the protection of journalists who continue to risk everything to speak truth to power.
