The Taliban police command in Kunduz has confirmed the detention of a female journalist in the province but claimed her arrest was unrelated to her professional activities.
In a statement issued on Monday, January 12, the media office of the Taliban police command in Kunduz said a woman named Nazera Rashidi, who previously worked for a local radio station, was detained along with four other women on charges described as “criminal offences”.
The statement said the arrest had “no connection to the journalist’s media activities”, but did not provide further details about the specific allegations against her.
The confirmation followed an earlier report by the Afghanistan Media Support Organization, which said Rashidi was arrested on Tuesday, January 6, and taken to an undisclosed location. Her family told the organisation she is innocent and has not engaged in any illegal activity, and it called for her immediate release.
According to reports, Taliban intelligence agents detained Rashidi as she was leaving her home in the city of Kunduz. Relatives said she is the sole breadwinner for her family and the guardian of her younger siblings.
The case has drawn renewed attention to the situation of journalists in Afghanistan, particularly women. Previously, Muhajir Farahi, the Taliban’s deputy minister for publications at the Ministry of Information and Culture, said there were “no journalists imprisoned in Afghanistan”.
Media rights groups dispute that claim, noting increasing pressure on journalists since the Taliban returned to power in 2021.
Women journalists face particularly severe restrictions. According to recent surveys, only about 7 percent of women journalists say they are able to work freely in Afghanistan. Around 55 precent report facing personal threats, while more than 32 precent work covertly, mainly for online and written media, due to fears of arrest or reprisals.
