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Fibre optic networks across the country have been deactivated, causing widespread disruption
This week, the Taliba have imposed a nationwide internet blackout in Afghanistan, largely cutting off the country’s 42.65 million people from the outside world.
The internet shutdown began with little warning yesterday, with citizens waking up to find they were no longer able to get online.
According to internet watchdog Netblocks, a watchdog organisation that monitors cybersecurity and internet governance, Afghanistan’s connectivity is “at 14% of ordinary levels”.
The shutdown was reportedly ordered by the Afghanistan Telecom Regulatory Authority (ATRA) and the Ministry of Telecommunications at the behest of Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, but no official statements have been made.
The Taliban first began cutting fixed internet across the country’s northern provinces earlier this month, with Attaullah Zaid, a spokesperson for the local government in Balkh, saying that Akhundzada had issued the order to ‘prevent immorality’.
As is to be expected, the cutting of fibre network cables is having widespread repercussions for Afghanistan far beyond fixed broadband services. These backbone networks carry data supporting a wide array of critical services, including banking and education, as well as being a key component of local mobile service delivery. As a result, much of the country has ground to a halt, with reports suggest that Kabul airport is at a standstill and banks are overflowing with customers that can no longer access their money online.
“All our business relies on mobiles. The deliveries are with mobiles. It’s like a holiday, everyone is at home. The market is totally frozen,” Najibullah, a 42-year-old shopkeeper in Kabul, told news agency AFP.
None of the country’s mobile operators, including Afghan Wireless (AWCC), Etisalat, and Roshan, have issued an official statement on the blackout.
The Taliban say the shutdown will last until further notice, with Zaid noting in the aforementioned social media post that “alternative options will be put in place across the country to meet connectivity needs”.
Far reaching internet shutdowns have long been a feature of repressive regimes, seeking to limit dissenters’ ability to communicate with each other and with the outside world. Perhaps the most notable example of this in recent years is Myanmar, which has instigated multiple blackouts since the military junta overthrew the civilian government in 2021.
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