Afghan Witness Reports

In Kabul, female presenters were reportedly told to appear on air only in full veiling, while in Khost, local media was prohibited from broadcasting calls from women and girls.

Afghan Witness has seen a downturn in street protests, with many women taking their protests indoors and online in an attempt to avoid suppression or violence.

The Etilaatroz team have been working steadily with AW to learn fact-checking methodologies and develop open source skills.

Pakistan stated the strikes were directed at militant group members located in Afghanistan, while the Afghan Taliban claimed that civilian residential areas were hit. Afghan Witness confirmed the deaths of several children following the strikes and verified retaliatory shelling and gunfire from Afghan forces towards Pakistani territory.

Many of the impersonator accounts identified by Afghan Witness repeatedly use derogatory language toward the Afghan LGBTQIA+ community and attempt to defame activists and news anchors in exile.

According to the group’s statement, a suicide bomber targeted Taliban members withdrawing their salaries. Reports cite conflicting casualty figures, though a source at a hospital claimed 21 individuals were killed in the attack.

Shakoor's anti-Taliban speech departs from typical pro-Taliban Khutbas, and underscores the impact that dissenting religious voices can have against the Taliban regime

Pro-Taliban accounts began sharing posts commemorating the anniversary of the 1993 Hazara massacre on X on February 10 to denounce Massoud’s military operation, whilst anti-Taliban activists called out pro-Taliban attempts to exacerbate ethnic tensions

The news that female graduates would be allowed to apply to study in public medical institutes in 11 provinces has been heavily promoted by social media accounts, some of which display bot-like behaviour

Over the past few months, Russia’s manoeuvring on Afghanistan appears to have increased, with indications of rising engagement with both Taliban and anti-Taliban forces.

Documenting 195 cases of suicide since April 2022, AW has observed a rise in female suicides since the Taliban seized power in 2021, and identified a pattern suggesting that ethnic minorities appear to make up a disproportionate share of the reported cases

With some having waited over a year for a new passport, the reopening of passport offices in Kabul led to several days of chaos. Their reclosure means Afghans seeking to exit the country must revert to the unreliable online application process.