Afghanistan hit by nationwide telecom blackout as Taliban cuts internet

Afghanistan faced a nationwide telecommunications blackout on Tuesday after the Taliban government shut down internet and mobile services, weeks after beginning to restrict fibre-optic access.

Internet watchdog NetBlocks said the country was experiencing a "total internet blackout," with mobile internet and satellite television also disrupted, says the BBC.

International news agencies reported losing contact with offices in Kabul, while flight tracking service Flightradar24 said at least eight flights scheduled to depart from or arrive at Kabul International Airport were cancelled.

A Taliban official said the shutdown would remain in place "until further notice."

Local broadcaster Tolo News advised audiences to follow its social media pages for updates, warning of disruptions to its television and radio output.

Residents in Kabul told the BBC their fibre-optic connections stopped working around 17:00 local time (1230 GMT) on Monday. Many businesses and banks were expected to feel the impact when services resumed on Tuesday morning.

"For weeks internet users in several Afghan provinces have been complaining about either slow internet access or no connectivity," NetBlocks said in a post on Mastodon.social. "Afghanistan is now in the midst of a total internet blackout as Taliban authorities move to implement morality measures, with multiple networks disconnected through the morning in a stepwise manner; telephone services are currently also impacted."

The Taliban has previously said it would create an alternative route for internet access but has given no details. Business leaders have warned that prolonged restrictions would seriously harm commercial activity.

"Loneliness enveloped the entire country," said Hamid Haidari, former editor-in-chief of Afghan news channel 1TV, on X. "Afghanistan has now officially taken first place in the competition with North Korea for [internet] disconnection."

Mariam Solaimankhil, a former Afghan lawmaker now based in the United States, wrote on X that "the silence online without Afghan voices from inside Afghanistan is deafening."

Since seizing power in 2021, the Taliban has imposed a series of restrictions in line with its interpretation of Islamic law. Earlier this month, it removed books written by women from university teaching, while banning instruction on human rights and sexual harassment. Women and girls are barred from education beyond the age of 12, with midwifery courses closed in 2024.