ISLAMABAD: A senior Taliban official has directed Afghan media outlets to widely promote what the group calls its "achievements" and to produce special programs marking the anniversary of its return to power, according to state-run media Bakhtar News.
Hayatullah Muhajir Farahi, the Taliban's deputy minister for publications at the Ministry of Information and Culture, made the remarks during a meeting with media representatives on Sunday, urging both state-controlled and privately owned outlets to highlight the Taliban's record ahead of Aug. 15, the anniversary of the collapse of Afghanistan's former republic in 2021.
According to Amu TV, Taliban officials launched a weeks-long media campaign initiative, titled “Government in the Mirror of the Press,” opened at the Afghanistan Media Center in Kabul and brought together Taliban officials, journalists and media representatives. Organizers said ministries and government agencies will present reports on their work over the coming weeks.
Naeem-ul-Haq Haqqani, head of the Afghanistan Media Center, urged media organizations to continue supporting coverage of the Taliban’s achievements.
“We expect all respected media outlets, as they have done before, to make every effort to cover the achievements of the Islamic Emirate,” he said.
According to the news agency, Farahi called on media organizations to prepare special broadcasts commemorating what the Taliban refers to as its "victory" and to publicize the government's accomplishments.
Taliban's continued restrictions on media
The directive comes as the Taliban prepares to mark four years since it seized Kabul on August 15, 2021, following the collapse of the Afghan government. The Taliban have traditionally celebrated the anniversary with public events and official messaging portraying their return to power as a national liberation.
Since regaining power, the Taliban have imposed sweeping restrictions on Afghanistan's media sector, tightening control over news coverage and limiting independent reporting. Journalists and media watchdogs have documented arrests, detentions, intimidation and imprisonment of reporters, while many media outlets have closed because of financial pressures and restrictive regulations.
