Since 22 July 2025, at least four media professionals and associates across Kabul have been arbitrarily arrested in raids carried out by the General Directorate of Intelligence (GDI) and the Ministry of Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice. All are currently behind bars, and one of them has appeared in a video of a staged confession where they admit to alleged crimes, such as “widespread moral corruption.” Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemns this new assault on journalism, and calls for their immediate release, the return of their confiscated equipment and an end to these intolerable repressive tactics.
“These latest arrests and forced 'confessions' are a terrifying escalation of the Taliban's relentless campaign to eradicate independent journalism in Afghanistan. This new method of intimidation violates both the right to a fair trial and press freedom. This repression must stop. We demand the immediate and unconditional release of all media professionals, the return of their seized equipment and an end to the use of these despicable methods of intimidation. The world must not look away while the Taliban seeks to silence journalism.
Four media professionals and assistants arrested in two days
- 22 July 2025: A Kabul-based website designer, who remains anonymous for safety reasons, was detained by the authorities and accused of helping design and maintain websites for media in exile. They were subsequently transferred to a GDI detention centre, the exact location of which is unknown.
- 23 July 2025: Three media professionals were arrested in Kabul during a raid on the offices of the Afghanistan’s Journalists Organizations and Media Federation (Afghanistan’s Journalists Organizations and Media Federation). They were taken into custody and their equipment was seized. One of them, Abuzar Sarem Sarepuli, who heads both the Federation and the Tawana News Agency, is accused of organising journalism training courses for women, “receiving foreign funding” and “passing secret reports to media outlets considered hostile to Islam.” He later appeared in a video posted on social media by the Taliban's digital outlet, Darisha, “confessing” to “spying for foreign powers” and “widespread moral corruption”. The two other journalists, Mohammad Bashir Hatef, also a freelancer for Zhwandoon TV, and Shakib Nazari, a freelancer for the Japanese media outlet i24 News, are still being held in an unknown location.
