AhlulBayt News Agency: The international press freedom organisation has placed Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada on a list of 33 individuals and entities that it says have restricted press freedom and journalists’ work in 2026.
In its profile of Akhundzada, RSF held him responsible for the escalation of censorship and media restrictions in Afghanistan. The organisation said that since the Taliban returned to power in August 2021, the group’s authorities had issued more than 20 nationwide directives, along with numerous local orders, aimed at restricting press freedom.
criticism of the Taliban government has been prohibited, women face extensive restrictions, political debate is suppressed, and broadcasting images of living beings has been banned. The organisation said Taliban authorities continue to intensify pressure on journalists and media outlets, threatening them with closure or suspension.
RSF reported that more than 74 media workers have been detained since the Taliban’s return to power. Six of those arrests took place in 2026, while some detainees have also been subjected to torture.
The organisation also highlighted a new criminal procedure code approved in January 2026, which reportedly provides for imprisonment and flogging for insulting leaders of the Islamic Emirate. According to RSF, the code also imposes penalties for failing to report contact with opponents of the government.
Media closures and suspensions were among the other concerns raised by the organisation. The Piigard News Agency and Afghan Voice (AVA), the Rah-e-Farda and Tamadon television networks, Khushhal, Bamyan, Hewad and Zama Kandahar radio stations, as well as BBC FM radio broadcasts, were among the outlets that faced closure or restrictions on their operations in 2026.
RSF also identified the Taliban’s ban on broadcasting images of living beings under its Law on the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice as a key instrument for restricting the media in Afghanistan. The organisation said the ban is being enforced in three-quarters of the country’s provinces.
In this year’s list, RSF included Akhundzada alongside several other political leaders, including US President Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Nicaragua’s Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo, and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.
Other figures named on the list include Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Argentine President Javier Milei and Kenyan President William Ruto.
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