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Taliban's Telecom Blackout Strands 40 Million Afghans

10/1/2025

24 5 Full Breakdown

Summary

Taliban Disrupts Connectivity

Afghanistan's Taliban-led shutdown has halted nationwide telecommunications, affecting more than 40 million people as connectivity drops below 1%.
The outage began with fiber restrictions and expanded to a total mobile and landline blackout, raising concerns about economic and humanitarian harm.
The United Nations (UN) has urged immediate restoration, citing major impacts on education, healthcare, banking, and aid delivery.

History

Historical Context

The U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 led to the Taliban's overthrow, allowing telecommunications to expand from nearly non-existent to a $2 billion industry by 2016, with 22 million mobile subscribers. However, the Taliban's return in 2021 has resulted in a telecommunications blackout affecting over 40 million people, disrupting essential services and highlighting ongoing connectivity struggles in a war-torn nation.

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Taliban Disrupts Connectivity

Afghanistan's Taliban-led shutdown has halted nationwide telecommunications, affecting more than 40 million people as connectivity drops below 1%.
The outage began with fiber restrictions and expanded to a total mobile and landline blackout, raising concerns about economic and humanitarian harm.
The United Nations (UN) has urged immediate restoration, citing major impacts on education, healthcare, banking, and aid delivery.

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