The Taliban has imposed an indefinite, nationwide internet shutdown across Afghanistan, a move that has crippled essential services and severed what many citizens considered their last connection to the outside world.
Internet watchdog Netblocks has confirmed the country is experiencing a “total internet blackout,” which began on Tuesday. The shutdown has paralyzed businesses, disrupted flights from Kabul, and cut off international news agencies from their local offices. Mobile internet and satellite TV services have also been severely affected.
For Afghan women and girls, the blackout extinguishes a final beacon of hope. Since returning to power in 2021, the Taliban has barred girls over 12 from attending school, drastically limited women’s employment, and recently purged university libraries of books written by female authors. For many, the internet offered the only remaining avenue for education and professional development.
“Our last hope was online learning. Now, that dream has been destroyed,” said Fahima Noori, a university law graduate who had enrolled in an online degree program. Her name, like others in this report, has been changed for her safety.
The nationwide blackout follows weeks of escalating disruptions, during which the Taliban began cutting fiber-optic connections in several provinces, claiming it was a measure to prevent “immorality.”
The consequences have been immediate and devastating. Zabi, an English teacher who moved his classes online after restrictions were placed on educational institutes, said the internet was cut while 45 of his students were taking a standardized English exam. “They had been preparing for it for months, but they missed the opportunity,” he said. “For my female students, this was their last chance. And now even that is gone.”
Business operations have also been severely hampered. Anas, a money changer in Takhar province, reported that the shutdown has decimated his livelihood. “Our business has been affected by about 90%,” he said. “My brother, who is also my partner, couldn’t even send an essential email to a client.”
While limited and unreliable mobile data remains an option for some, its cost is prohibitive for most Afghans. A monthly 100GB plan costs around $50, a stark figure in a country where the per capita income was just $306 in 2024. In contrast, shared Wi-Fi cost about a third of that price.
The Taliban has yet to provide an official reason for the total shutdown, having previously stated only that an “alternative route” for internet access would be established. The move is the latest in a series of severe restrictions imposed under the group’s interpretation of Islamic law. The government maintains that it respects women’s rights within the framework of Afghan culture and its legal interpretations.
The shutdown has left many citizens in despair. “The night before, we heard the Taliban had cut internet access in Mazar, and my eldest daughter came to me with tears in her eyes,” Anas recalled. “Their last opportunity to study is now gone. Seeing my children so helpless… only God knows what will happen to them.”
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