Bayan News – The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has expressed concern over the detention of journalists by the forces of the Islamic Emirate.
On Friday (August 17), the agency announced in a tweet that in the past ten days, the authorities of the ruling administration have detained media personnel in six provinces of Afghanistan.
The organization mentioned the names of Murtaza Behboodi, a journalist, and Matiullah Wesa, an activist involved in girls’ education, and stated that both were arrested earlier this year and are still in custody.
In a statement, UNAMA said, “UNAMA reminds the governing authorities of their obligations under international law, including respect, support, and promotion of the right to freedom of thought and expression, as well as the rights of detainees to access their families, legal counsel, and knowledge of the charges against them.”
According to published reports, recently nine journalists from the provinces of Nangarhar, Kandahar, Kunduz, Ghazni, and Khost have been detained on charges of collaborating with foreign media outlets.
Officials of the interim Kabul government have announced that journalists will be released from custody after their cases are reviewed.
