Afghan Witness Reports

The Afghan media landscape has been under sustained pressure since the Taliban takeover, with the closure of two TV channels linked to political parties and a series of journalist detentions in recent weeks, indicating the Taliban's ongoing efforts to control the media landscape.

In audio clips circulated online in March, the Taliban’s Supreme Leader emphasised the strict implementation of Sharia punishments and spoke of harsher punishments for women.

According to the Taliban, the land that Hizb-e Islami party leader Hekmatyar was living on had been provided by the Republican government and was not legitimate, as recognising it as such would imply recognition of the previous administration.

Female-led newsroom Zan Times used investigative reporting and open source techniques to document killings, disappearances and arrests of Afghan women.

In Kabul, female presenters were reportedly told to appear on air only in full veiling, while in Khost, local media was prohibited from broadcasting calls from women and girls.

Afghan Witness has seen a downturn in street protests, with many women taking their protests indoors and online in an attempt to avoid suppression or violence.

The Etilaatroz team have been working steadily with AW to learn fact-checking methodologies and develop open source skills.

Pakistan stated the strikes were directed at militant group members located in Afghanistan, while the Afghan Taliban claimed that civilian residential areas were hit. Afghan Witness confirmed the deaths of several children following the strikes and verified retaliatory shelling and gunfire from Afghan forces towards Pakistani territory.

Many of the impersonator accounts identified by Afghan Witness repeatedly use derogatory language toward the Afghan LGBTQIA+ community and attempt to defame activists and news anchors in exile.

According to the group’s statement, a suicide bomber targeted Taliban members withdrawing their salaries. Reports cite conflicting casualty figures, though a source at a hospital claimed 21 individuals were killed in the attack.

Shakoor's anti-Taliban speech departs from typical pro-Taliban Khutbas, and underscores the impact that dissenting religious voices can have against the Taliban regime

Pro-Taliban accounts began sharing posts commemorating the anniversary of the 1993 Hazara massacre on X on February 10 to denounce Massoud’s military operation, whilst anti-Taliban activists called out pro-Taliban attempts to exacerbate ethnic tensions