A severe communications blackout has struck Afghanistan following the Taliban’s decision to cut fibre-optic connections across several provinces, citing efforts to prevent “vice” as the rationale.
According to Netblocks, a cybersecurity and internet governance watchdog, the country’s connectivity has plummeted to just 14% of normal levels, indicating an “intentional disconnection of service.” This ongoing crackdown, initiated earlier this month, involves shutting down high-speed internet in numerous regions, resulting in extremely slow or entirely inaccessible internet.
Since internet and telephone services often share infrastructure, especially in a country with limited telecom development, physically severing fibre-optic lines effectively disrupts both internet and mobile or fixed-line phone services. The process may require trial and error, as authorities attempt to disconnect the internet but keep some phone services operational.
On September 16, Balkh provincial spokesperson Attaullah Zaid announced that fibre-optic internet had been fully banned in the northern province, citing measures to prevent vice and promising alternative options to meet connectivity needs nationwide. Similar restrictions were reported earlier in provinces like Badakhshan, Takhar, Kandahar, Helmand, Nangarhar, and Uruzgan.
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Before the Taliban’s return, Kabul had invested heavily in a 9,350-kilometer fibre-optic network to modernize infrastructure, foster global integration, and alleviate poverty. Since taking power again in 2021, the Taliban have imposed various restrictions in line with their strict interpretation of Islamic law, affecting many facets of daily life and technological connectivity across Afghanistan.
