Afghan newspapers go online due to financial crisis, lack of information under Taliban

Kabul [Afghanistan], September 23 (ANI): Newspapers in Afghanistan have stopped printing and have gone online due to financial crisis and lack of information under the Taliban.

The Afghanistan National Journalists' Union on Wednesday reported that due to the financial crisis, around 150 print media outlets across Afghanistan have stopped printing newspapers and magazines since the fall of the former government, reported Tolo News.

Watchdog organizations recently said the Afghan media outlets are running out of funds and face a lack of information under the Taliban. Many Afghan outlets continue publishing news online, while some have shut down completely.

Ahmad Shoaib Fana, chief executive of the national journalists union, said, "Print media has stopped in the country. If the situation goes on like this, we will face a social crisis."

Ali Haqmal, a journalist working for 8 Sobh newspaper, reports that the outlet is now publishing online. He said, "We made efforts to do whatever people expect. We focus on reporting online, and we still try to get the information to the people."

Ashaq Ali Ehsas, deputy chief of 8 Sobh newspaper, said, "Each day 15,000 papers were being published and distributed in Kabul and some provinces. The process was disrupted due to problems over the printing and distributing of newspapers after the fall of the government."

Arman Mili Newspaper is another famous newspaper that has stopped operating, reported Tolo News.

Sayed Shoaib Parsa, the founder of the newspaper, said, "We had 22 employees here. All lost their jobs. We are waiting for the situation to normalize so we can restart publishing."

Moreover, the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) expressed concern over the safety of journalists in Afghanistan and slammed the Taliban for suppressing the freedom of the media in the country.

Since Taliban rule solidified in the country, at least 153 media outlets have had to shut down over increasing threats towards journalists, and female media employees have been barred from work entirely, according to the federation.

"The situation in Afghanistan is growing increasingly dire for all media workers, with many journalists displaced due to the Taliban offensive, in hiding and without work. The IFJ stands in solidarity with its Afghan colleagues and calls on the Taliban to respect media freedom and the rights of journalists," the IFJ said in a statement.

Contrary to the promises made by the Taliban of respecting human values, the group continues to violate the basic human rights of media personnel as they are being harassed, tortured, and killed in the country.

Journalists are scared; feeling hopeless as the spirit of journalism they built in the past two decades is ceasing to exist now, reported Al Arabiya Post.

Earlier, a group of 150 Afghan journalists has also urged the United Nations and the international community to protect them from the threats being issued by the Taliban. (ANI)