Story perspectives

Afghan Supreme Leader Bans Phones for Officials, June 17

6/19/2026

Summary

Akhundzada Bans Phones

Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada ordered a smartphone ban for all government and military staff effective June 17 2026.
The Supreme Court-emblem letter states that only the supreme leader may grant exemptions.
Officials in Daikundi Province and other areas are enforcing the ban and warning violators that phones will be smashed and punishments imposed.
Government agencies are shifting to regular cellular calls instead of WhatsApp to maintain operations.

Summary

Taliban Bans Phones

The Taliban banned smartphones, ordering citizens to surrender devices.
Chargé d’affaires Naseer Ahmad Faiq denounced the ban as a tool to suppress dissent and warned it deprives citizens of basic communication tools.
Journalists, including the Afghanistan Journalists Centre, called the restriction a serious threat to press freedom.
Social-media videos show Taliban members in several provinces smashing smartphones, which Khost officials say has disrupted essential administrative work.

Summary

UNSC Condemns Ban

The United Nations Security Council condemned the June 2026 smartphone ban as a tool to suppress dissent and hide human-rights abuses.
The Council framed the ban as part of a global trend where autocratic regimes weaponize internet access.
It drew parallels to temporary digital blackouts during contested elections and civil unrest in East Africa.
The decree covers eight zones and has suspended governmental WhatsApp in an estimated 20 provinces.

History

Historical Context

On January 27, 2011, President Hosni Mubarak’s government cut off Egypt’s internet for five days, a key tactic of the Arab Spring protests. It blocked access to Facebook and Twitter, forcing activists to organize through local, in-person networks. The abrupt kill-switch showed how authoritarian regimes can silence dissent by disabling digital platforms, a pattern echoed in later restrictions elsewhere.

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Akhundzada Bans Phones

Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada ordered a smartphone ban for all government and military staff effective June 17 2026.
The Supreme Court-emblem letter states that only the supreme leader may grant exemptions.
Officials in Daikundi Province and other areas are enforcing the ban and warning violators that phones will be smashed and punishments imposed.
Government agencies are shifting to regular cellular calls instead of WhatsApp to maintain operations.

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