Afghan media reports say that in a bid to curb the Northern Alliance’s increasing resistance in Panjshir, the Taliban has cut down the province’s internet connection.
Raha news agency, in particular, says the Taliban have shut down the internet in Panjshir valley, where resistance forces are holding a last stand against them in Afghanistan. The action has purportedly been taken to prevent former vice president Amrullah Saleh from sharing his messages on Twitter.
Citing a tweet by the resistance force revealed on Sunday, TOLONews says that in a bid to curb the Northern Alliance’s increasing resistance in Panjshir, the Taliban has cut down the province’s internet connection, a tweet by the resistance force revealed on Sunday.
Furthermore, the tweet reportedly stated that the Roshan and Etisalat networks, the telecommunication networks used by the leaders, were also down.
Experts have said that internet blackout directly implies that the Taliban aimed to stop Ahmad Massoud, Amrullah Saleh and other leaders from tweeting.
It is worth mentioning that Panjshir, nested in the Hindu Kush mountains, is the only Afghan province that has not yet fallen to the Taliban militants. Several Taliban opponents have gathered in Panjshir. Ahmad Massoud, the son of legendary Afghan rebel commander Ahmad Shah Massoud, is presently in Panjshir valley along with former vice president Amrullah Saleh.
After former Afghanistan president Ashraf Ghani fled the country on August 15, Amrullah Saleh had declared himself as the legitimate caretaker president of Afghanistan as per the country's constitution.
However, experts consider that Saleh's claim is yet to be recognized by any country or international body such as the United Nations.
