RASC News Agency: The Afghanistan Journalists Center has confirmed that operations of the Taliban-controlled National Television in Takhar province have been suspended following the enforcement of a new decree prohibiting the broadcast of images and videos featuring living beings. The announcement was made on the evening of Monday, October 14.
This suspension follows an order from Habibullah Hanafi, the head of the Taliban’s Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice in Takhar. Hanafi instructed media outlets in the province that no organization is permitted to broadcast images or videos of living creatures, as mandated by the ministry’s directive. Due to this, private television stations in Takhar are also being pushed toward shutting down.
This restrictive order, communicated to media representatives just a day before its implementation, has raised significant concern among the media community. The Afghanistan Journalists Center expressed deep apprehension over this decree and called for its immediate withdrawal. According to the center’s sources, media activities on social media platforms have also been limited, preventing the dissemination of images of living beings.
Previously, similar actions had been taken in Kandahar, where the Taliban-controlled National Television station was closed for the same reason. Under the new law, recently ratified by the Taliban’s leadership, the creation and distribution of images of living creatures have been officially outlawed. A spokesperson for the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice had earlier explained to “Agence France-Presse” that this prohibition would gradually be enforced throughout Afghanistan, as such imagery is considered to be in violation of Islamic Sharia.
