Kenneth Glad
Independent journalism has become harder since the Taliban returned to power. Local broadcasters now work within increasingly narrow limits on what they can report.
Afghanistan’s media sector has contracted sharply since August 2021. Figures cited by Forbidden Stories show that more than 75 journalists have been arrested while hundreds have fled the country.
The International Federation of Journalists says about 95 percent of female journalists have had to leave the profession, reflecting how dramatically the country’s reporting environment has changed under Taliban rule.
According to Forbidden Stories, Radio Nasim was Daykundi’s most-listened-to local broadcaster, reaching about 300,000 people. Editor in chief Sultan Ali Jawadi covered women’s education, economic hardship, human rights and local government conduct, giving residents access to reporting on subjects that had become increasingly difficult to discuss publicly.
Over more than a decade on air, the station developed a substantial local audience and became closely associated with Jawadi’s willingness to address sensitive social issues.
Together with Etilaatroz, Forbidden Stories examined Jawadi’s repeated confrontations with authorities and the rise of Aminullah Obaid, who governed Daykundi before becoming Kabul governor in late 2023. Etilaatroz is a Washington-based Afghan investigative media outlet that reports on political, social and human rights issues affecting Afghanistan.
Working with Forbidden Stories, the outlet helped gather testimony and trace parts of Obaid’s career that remain poorly documented in public records. Their investigation sought to reconstruct his background, examine his reported connections within the Taliban movement and better understand how he advanced through its political structure after the group returned to national power.
Reporting brought mounting risks
Court documents obtained by Forbidden Stories show Jawadi received a one-year prison sentence in December 2023. The accusations concerned girls’ school closures, threats against journalists, administrative favoritism and alleged extraction of money from humanitarian organizations. Jawadi denied the aid-related allegation.
The case went beyond the humanitarian-aid dispute. According to Forbidden Stories, authorities also accused Jawadi of providing foreign institutions and media with information about journalists being threatened or beaten and about favoritism within the provincial administration. He had previously faced interrogation, detention and accusations of espionage and propaganda against the Taliban authorities.
The investigation reported that a court order allowed testimony from two people, or one person considered just, to establish grounds for Ta’zir punishment. At the time, prosecutions resulting in prison sentences for Afghan journalists were still relatively unusual. The court material obtained listed several separate accusations tied to Jawadi’s reporting and communications with organizations outside Afghanistan.
Jawadi was arrested again in August 2025, his twelfth detention, before eventually fleeing Afghanistan. By then, Radio Nasim’s ability to continue operating in Daykundi had deteriorated considerably.
He reached Pakistan, where intensified expulsions of Afghans increased his fear of being returned. The United Nations said Pakistan expelled 942,000 Afghans during 2025, adding to the uncertainty facing people who had sought refuge there.
Jawadi told the outlet: “For 13 years, we were the voice of hope, kindness, awareness and life. … But today, with a heavy heart, we must say, ‘We can’t go on any longer.’”
Aid allegations raised concerns
Material gathered by the now-dissolved U.S. Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, or SIGAR, and reviewed by Forbidden Stories, contained allegations of Taliban interference in humanitarian distribution. Confidential sources described relatives or loyalists appearing on beneficiary lists and assistance reaching military facilities. These accounts were allegations rather than judicial findings.
The documents formed part of SIGAR’s examination of aid after the Taliban takeover. The underlying material included 85 interviews, many conducted with people working in or close to humanitarian operations inside Afghanistan. Some interviewees alleged that food intended for civilians was redirected to Taliban religious schools and military sites.
Daykundi had already become a difficult province for relief organizations. Humanitarian assistance there was temporarily suspended in 2022 amid concerns about interference, while 15 non-governmental organizations also halted operations. A Western expert cited by the outlet said local authorities had sought to influence beneficiary lists, including by adding people close to the Taliban.
The joint investigation also cited sources alleging that Obaid led a Taliban front and served as a shadow governor during the insurgency, operating as a parallel Taliban official while Afghanistan’s internationally recognized government remained in authority. Separate testimony gathered by Etilaatroz linked him to senior Taliban figures and suggested that his wartime relationships may have contributed to his later political rise.
According to Forbidden Stories, Radio Nasim later resumed broadcasting in neighboring Bamiyan with different journalists producing cultural reports and airing Taliban officials’ speeches without criticism. Its Daykundi operation, however, remained off the air, leaving the station that had once challenged local officials substantially changed.
Sources: Forbidden Stories, Etilaatroz, SIGAR, International Federation of Journalists, United Nations
