BBC's Pashto TV 'banned' By Taliban In Afghanistan, Broadcaster Says 'worrying'

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BBC TV news bulletin in Pashto, Persia and Uzbek had released air in Afghanistan after the Taliban regime ordered television partners to remove international broadcasters from their air waves, according to British Broadcasters.

This is a worrying development during uncertainty and turbulence for the Afghan people. More than six million Afghans consumes independent journalism and does not side with BBC on TV every week and is very important they are not rejected access there in the future,” Drag Kafala, Head Language on the BBC World Service, said in a statement.

The Kafala also asked the Taliban to reverse their decision and let “our TV partner return the BBC news bulletin into their air soon”.

According to broadcasters, BBC World services have provided news, science, entertainment and other programs to viewers, readers, and listeners in Afghanistan for decades. “The half-hour program of BBC Pashto TV, which airs every day at 6pm, has more than six million viewers in Afghanistan alone,” he said.

The BBC on the Pashto website reported that the show, which had been aired on a local Shamshad TV in Afghanistan for years, was not aired on Sunday night. BBC Farsi and BBC Uzbek television broadcasts in Afghanistan, through Ariana and Azezo TV, have also been closed for the past few days.

After taking over Afghanistan in August last year, the Taliban had promised a softer rule compared to their first regime from 1996 to 2001, famous for raw violations of rights. But the regime imposes many restrictions on women, effectively forbid them from many government work, what they wear and prevent them from traveling out of their own city.