Government employees across Afghanistan have begun switching off their smartphones following a sweeping ban imposed by the country's Taliban leadership. The order, which reportedly originates from Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, was communicated through a letter bearing the emblem of the Supreme Court and circulated on social media last week.
The directive, effective from 17 June, applies to all military and civilian department staff, with exemptions possible only from the supreme leader himself. In Ghazni province, located between Kabul and the Taliban's spiritual heartland of Kandahar, officials began signing off from their devices on Tuesday evening. Irfan Andarh, an official from the mines and petroleum department, wrote in a WhatsApp group seen by the AFP news agency: "It has been decided that from Wednesday, the use of smartphones inside all offices in Ghazni province is prohibited." He added that employees would remain reachable via telephone calls and email.
A municipal worker in Ghazni, speaking on condition of anonymity for security reasons, said staff had been warned that anyone using a smartphone would be fired and face legal action. In remote Badakhshan, in northeastern Afghanistan, an employee of the provincial information department said the penalty for breaking the rule was six months in prison. "A verbal decree of the Islamic Emirate (of Afghanistan) was read out and all heads of government departments were ordered that from today onwards, none of the employees of Taliban offices are allowed to use smartphones," he told AFP.
Disruption to Daily Operations
The ban has already caused significant disruption. Three government workers in Badakhshan, speaking anonymously due to safety concerns, told AFP it would be hard for them to perform their duties. A transport department employee explained that he had been using WhatsApp to share information on cargo movements. "Now, with this ban, our work can be disrupted and can even be made impossible," he said.
A teacher described the decision as "truly heartbreaking" and said his smartphone was confiscated on Wednesday, before being returned with a warning not to carry it again. "We need apps to stay connected with the students and hear their problems, for example, in the WhatsApp groups, they can share their classroom problems, questions related to their homework," he added. An employee from the provincial education department noted that he had been using AI tools on his smartphone to translate between Dari and Pashto, the languages used in government communications. "Then I would send the replies to the ministry. Now I don't know what will happen," he told AFP.
The Taliban authorities have ruled for nearly five years according to a strict interpretation of Islamic law. Last year, broadband access was restricted in several provinces for weeks, before the government unexpectedly cut off the internet and phone networks nationwide. That shutdown paralysed banks, grounded planes, and caused chaos at hospitals for two days before communications were restored.
How widely the rule is being implemented across Afghanistan and the scale of its impact remain unclear. Two spokesmen for the Afghan government did not respond to press requests for comment. The ban underscores the Taliban's ongoing efforts to control information and communication, even as it disrupts the functioning of its own administration.
